In Relativsätzen gibt es häufig Präpositionen und ein Relativpronomen ist das Objekt dieser Präposition. Im Alltagsenglisch steht die Präposition für gewöhnlich am Ende des Relativsatzes und das Pronomen kan eingeschlossen oder weggelassen werden. Im formellen Englisch steht die Präposition vor dem Relativpronomen und in diesem Fall kann das Pronomen weggelassen werden. Die in Klammern stehenden Pronomen in den Beispielen unten können weggelassen werden.
Beispiele
| Alltagsenglisch | Formelles Englisch |
|---|---|
| Is that the man (who) she arrived with? | Is that the man with whom she arrived? |
| Does he know the girl (that) John is talking to? | Does he know the girl to whom John is talking? |
| The person (who) he is negotiating with is the Chairman of a large company. | The person with whom he is negotiating is the Chairman of a large company. |
| It is a club (which) many important people belong to. | It is a club to which many important people belong. |
| He liked the people (that) he lived with. | He liked the people with whom he lived. |
| The tree (that) they had their picnic under was the largest and oldest in the park. | The tree under which they had their picnic was the largest and oldest in the park. |
| It was the river (that) the children preferred to swim in. | It was the river in which the children preferred to swim. |
| The jungle (that) the tribe lived in was full of strange and unusual animals. | The jungle in which the tribe lived was full of strange and unusual animals. |