Life in Nature & Global Problems

• Scientists who study earthquakes can now predict some tremors more accurately.
• The flood that destroyed the village changed the way the government plans for disasters.
• This is the kind of technology which helps doctors diagnose diseases faster.
• People who live near the coast are usually the most vulnerable to storms.

In each sentence, does the relative clause give essential information about the noun before it, or could we remove it without losing important meaning? Which word introduces each clause?

We use defining relative clauses when we need to make clear exactly which person or thing we are talking about — for example, identifying one specific disaster among many.

TRHangi kişi ya da nesneden bahsettiğimizi netleştirmek istediğimizde defining relative clause kullanırız — örneğin birçok deprem arasından belirli birini tanımlarken.

• The scientist, who developed the app, works at our university.The scientist who developed the app works at our university.

  No commas are used with a defining relative clause, because the information is essential.

  TRZorunlu bilgi veren defining clause'da virgül kullanılmaz.

• This is the village which it was destroyed by the flood.This is the village which was destroyed by the flood.

  Don't repeat the subject pronoun (it/he/she) inside the relative clause.

  TRRelative clause içinde özne olan 'it' gibi bir zamir tekrar kullanılmaz.

• The 2023 earthquake, which affected millions of people, changed disaster policy across the region.
• Dr. Aylin Kaya, who leads the early warning project, spoke at the conference yesterday.
• Wildfires, which are becoming more frequent because of climate change, threaten entire ecosystems.
• My uncle, who works for a relief organisation, has helped after three major floods.

Is the information in the relative clause essential, or is it extra/additional information? What punctuation marks it off from the rest of the sentence? Could you use 'that' instead of 'who/which' here?

We use non-defining relative clauses to add an interesting or extra detail about a noun whose identity is already clear (proper names, unique people or places).

TRZaten kim/ne olduğu belli olan bir isim (özel isimler, tek olan yer/kişiler) hakkında ilginç ya da ek bir detay eklemek istediğimizde non-defining relative clause kullanırız.

• The Amazon rainforest, that produces oxygen, is shrinking.The Amazon rainforest, which produces oxygen, is shrinking.

  'That' cannot be used in non-defining relative clauses — use who or which.

  TRNon-defining clause'larda 'that' kullanılmaz, sadece who/which kullanılır.

• My uncle who works for a relief organisation is here.My uncle, who works for a relief organisation, is here.

  Because 'my uncle' already identifies one specific person, the extra information needs commas.

  TRTek/belli bir kişi (my uncle) hakkında ek bilgi verildiği için virgül gerekir.

• The report (that) scientists published last year warned about rising sea levels.
• The app (which) my brother uses tracks earthquake activity in real time.
• I still remember the storm (that) we experienced two years ago.
• The volunteers (who) the organisation trained worked in the flood zone.

In each sentence, is the person/thing in the relative clause the subject or the object of the verb inside that clause? Which word could be left out without changing the meaning?

We often omit the object relative pronoun in speech and everyday writing to make sentences sound more natural and less formal.

TRKonuşma dilinde ve günlük yazıda cümleyi daha akıcı hale getirmek için nesne konumundaki relative pronoun'u atlarız.

• The scientist studies volcanoes gave a talk.The scientist who studies volcanoes gave a talk.

  A subject relative pronoun cannot be omitted.

  TRRelative pronoun clause'un öznesiyse atlanamaz.

• This is the report which, I read yesterday.This is the report (which) I read yesterday.

  The object relative pronoun can be dropped, but if it stays, no comma is used in a defining clause.

  TRNesne relative pronoun atlanabilir ama kalırsa virgül kullanılmaz (defining clause).

• The scientist whose research predicted the earthquake received an award.
• We interviewed a family whose house was destroyed by the flood.
• This is the village whose water supply was affected by the drought.
• The company whose app warns people about wildfires is expanding across the country.

What does 'whose' show — possession, location or time? Can 'whose' be used only for people, or for people and things too?

We use 'whose' to introduce a feature that belongs to a person or place — their house, family, system, and so on.

TRBir kişinin ya da yerin sahip olduğu bir özelliği (evi, ailesi, sistemi vb.) tanıtırken 'whose' kullanırız.

• The scientist who's research predicted the earthquake won an award.The scientist whose research predicted the earthquake won an award.

  Don't confuse 'whose' (possessive) with 'who's' (short for 'who is/has').

  TR'Whose' (iyelik) ile 'who's' (who is/has kısaltması) karıştırılmamalı.

• The village whose it lost its water supply needs help.The village whose water supply was lost needs help.

  Don't add another possessive pronoun (it/its) — 'whose' already shows possession.

  TR'Whose' zaten iyelik anlamı verdiği için ayrıca 'it/its' kullanılmaz.