52 UNIT 2 • Narrative Essays
Building Better Sentences: For further practice, go to Practice 10 on page 197 in Appendix 1.
Adjective Clauses
Adjective clauses are one of the most powerful ways to combine two ideas (simple sentences)
into one complex sentence. Study the following rules and examples:
1. Adjective clauses must contain a subject and a verb.
2. e subject of an adjective clause can be who (people), which (things), or that (people or things).
Samir studies at a university. The university is well known for its technology programs.
adjective clause
Samir studies at a university that is well known for its technology programs.
3. If the information in the adjective clause is necessary to clarify the person or thing you are writing
about, do not use a comma to separate the ideas. However, if the information in the adjective clause
is not necessary to understand the meaning of the sentence, use a comma, or pair of commas, to
separate the adjective clause from the rest of the sentence. In other words, commas indicate the
information is extra. Study the examples below.
Necessary Information Unnecessary Information
The city that we will visit last on our trip is
located in central Florida.
Orlando, which we will visit last on our trip, is
located in central Florida.
NOTE: When the writer says the city, it is not
clear which city the writer is talking about. The
adjective clause (that we will visit last on our trip)
is important information for readers because it
tells them which city in central Florida the writer is
referring to.
NOTE: When the writer says Orlando, the readers
know which city the writer is talking about. The
information about when the writer will visit this
city does not affect our ability to know that the
writer is referring to Orlando.
Grammar for Writing
4 I heard him call my name. I ran to the room
we shared, sat down on the bed, and watched Claudio close his suitcase.
He turned to me and nodded. “It’s time, brother,” he said. I thought
he was referring to his time to leave the house. Actually, he went on to
explain all of the important responsibilities that I would have aer he
was gone. Claudio meant that it was time for me to take on a bigger role
in the family.
that point, I understood everything.
5
then on, I took my role as the “man of the
house” very seriously. With Claudio away, I would need to be available
for Mom whenever she needed me. What have I learned from my
brother? I have learned about family, love, and responsibility.
to take on: undertake,
face
a role: job, function
94943_ch02_ptg01_hires_038-063.indd 52 8/27/13 7:03 PM