Exercise 23: Adjective Clause worksheet - Free Printable

The worksheet titled "Exercise 23: Adjective Clause 1" asks students to identify whether each given sentence contains a Subject Adjective Clause or an Object Adjective Clause. The task is to determine the role of the adjective clause in each sentence — whether it modifies the subject or the object.

Let’s go through each sentence and analyze it step by step.

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🔹 What is an Adjective Clause?

An adjective clause is a dependent clause that describes a noun or pronoun. It usually begins with relative pronouns like:
- who, whom, whose, which, that

It can be either:
- Subject Adjective Clause: The clause acts as the subject of the verb in the main clause.
- Object Adjective Clause: The clause acts as the object of the verb in the main clause.

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Now, let's solve each item:

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1. The car, which is red, belongs to Penny.

- Main clause: "The car belongs to Penny."
- Adjective clause: "which is red"
- This clause describes "the car", which is the subject of the main clause.
- Since the clause tells us about the subject ("car"), it's a Subject Adjective Clause.

✔ Answer: Subject Adjective Clause

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2. Yaya, whom Yoshiki knows well, is an architect.

- Main clause: "Yaya is an architect."
- Adjective clause: "whom Yoshiki knows well"
- "Whom" refers to Yaya, who is the object of the verb "knows".
- So the clause describes Yaya, but functions as the object in the relative clause.
- However, since it's modifying the subject (Yaya), it's still a Subject Adjective Clause.

> Note: Even though "whom" is the object in the clause, the entire clause modifies the subject of the main sentence.

✔ Answer: Subject Adjective Clause

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3. Susie has a dog which follows her everywhere.

- Main clause: "Susie has a dog."
- Adjective clause: "which follows her everywhere"
- "Which" refers to dog, which is the object of the verb "has".
- So the clause describes the object of the main clause → Object Adjective Clause

✔ Answer: Object Adjective Clause

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4. Mary is decorating a house that Robert designed.

- Main clause: "Mary is decorating a house."
- Adjective clause: "that Robert designed"
- "That" refers to house, which is the object of "decorating".
- So the clause describes the object of the main verb → Object Adjective Clause

✔ Answer: Object Adjective Clause

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5. The package that arrived this morning is on the desk.

- Main clause: "The package is on the desk."
- Adjective clause: "that arrived this morning"
- "That" refers to package, which is the subject of the main clause.
- The clause gives more info about the subject → Subject Adjective Clause

✔ Answer: Subject Adjective Clause

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6. The class we attended was very boring.

- Main clause: "The class was very boring."
- Adjective clause: "we attended" (implied: "which we attended")
- "We attended" → "attended" is a verb, and "class" is the object of "attended".
- So the clause describes class, which is the subject of the main clause.
- But the clause itself shows that class is the object in the relative clause → so it's describing the subject of the main sentence.

✔ Answer: Subject Adjective Clause

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7. He is taking a job that many people want.

- Main clause: "He is taking a job."
- Adjective clause: "that many people want"
- "That" refers to job, which is the object of "taking".
- So the clause describes the object → Object Adjective Clause

✔ Answer: Object Adjective Clause

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8. Ken, whom Paula is in love with, is my brother.

- Main clause: "Ken is my brother."
- Adjective clause: "whom Paula is in love with"
- "Whom" refers to Ken, who is the object of the preposition "with".
- But again, Ken is the subject of the main clause.
- The clause modifies Ken, the subject, so it's a Subject Adjective Clause

✔ Answer: Subject Adjective Clause

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9. The dog that bit my little brother has just run down the street.

- Main clause: "The dog has just run down the street."
- Adjective clause: "that bit my little brother"
- "That" refers to dog, which is the subject of the main clause.
- The clause describes the subject → Subject Adjective Clause

✔ Answer: Subject Adjective Clause

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10. A man who looked like Brad Pitt gave me his autograph.

- Main clause: "A man gave me his autograph."
- Adjective clause: "who looked like Brad Pitt"
- "Who" refers to man, which is the subject of the main clause.
- The clause describes the subject → Subject Adjective Clause

✔ Answer: Subject Adjective Clause

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✔ Final Answers:

| No. | Sentence | Answer |
|-----|--------|--------|
| 1 | The car, which is red, belongs to Penny. | Subject Adjective Clause |
| 2 | Yaya, whom Yoshiki knows well, is an architect. | Subject Adjective Clause |
| 3 | Susie has a dog which follows her everywhere. | Object Adjective Clause |
| 4 | Mary is decorating a house that Robert designed. | Object Adjective Clause |
| 5 | The package that arrived this morning is on the desk. | Subject Adjective Clause |
| 6 | The class we attended was very boring. | Subject Adjective Clause |
| 7 | He is taking a job that many people want. | Object Adjective Clause |
| 8 | Ken, whom Paula is in love with, is my brother. | Subject Adjective Clause |
| 9 | The dog that bit my little brother has just run down the street. | Subject Adjective Clause |
| 10 | A man who looked like Brad Pitt gave me his autograph. | Subject Adjective Clause |

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📌 Summary Tip:

- If the adjective clause describes the subject of the main sentence → Subject Adjective Clause
- If it describes the object of the main sentence → Object Adjective Clause

Even if the relative pronoun is the object in the clause, what matters is what noun it modifies in the main sentence.

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