Day 15 Homophones And Defining relative clauses

1.Homophones

red
the colour. ‘I bought a red dress to wear at the party.’

read
the past of read. ‘I read that book last year.’

flour
the main ingredient in bread. ‘I need half a kilo of flour for this recipe’.

flower
the brightly coloured and sweet-smelling part of a plant. ‘My favourite flowers are roses.’

mail
letters and parcels you send in the post. ‘I haven’t opened my mail yet.’

male
the opposite of female. ‘This hospital has separate male and female wards.’

right
the opposite of left. ‘Most people are right-handed.’

write
write a letter. ‘I write to my sister in America every week.’

peace
quiet and calm. ‘The war continued for several months while the peace agreement was finalised.’

piece
a part of something. ‘Would you like a piece of cake?’

tail
the long, narrow part that sticks out of the back of an animal’s body. ‘Cats use their tails to help them balance.’

tale
a kind of story. ‘My favourite fairy tale is Sleeping Beauty.’

2.Defining relative clauses

Meaning and use
Defining relative clauses give us important information about the person, thing or place that we are talking about. When making a relative clause, we can use the following relative pronouns: who for people, that and which for things, and where for places.

The police officer arrested the man who robbed the bank.

In this example, ‘who robbed the bank’ tells us which man the police officer arrested. Without this information, we do not know which man was arrested.

David visited the place where we first met.

Again, ‘where we first met’ tells us which place David visited.

These are the shoes that I bought in Tokyo.

Summer is the season which I enjoy the most.

‘That I bought in Tokyo’ adds information about the shoes, and ‘which I enjoy the most’ adds information about the season.

Form
A defining relative clause is made with noun + relative pronoun + rest of clause.

Positive
My father is the man who owns this restaurant.

The restaurant where we met closed down last year.

Negative
This isn’t the sandwich that I ordered.

David didn’t recognise the woman who waved at him.

Question
Are you the person who called earlier?

Is this the cafe where you left your handbag?

Take note: using ‘whom’ instead of ‘who’
In formal speech and written English, whom replaces who when the relative pronoun refers to the object of the relative clause.

The person who called me was my father. (who = subject)

The person whom I called was my father. (who = object)

Spoken English
In informal speech, the pronoun that can replace who, which and where.

Jennifer is the woman that I love.

The library is the place that I feel the most relaxed.

If the relative pronoun functions as the object of the relative clause, the relative pronoun can be left out completely.

Kelly is the woman whom I love. = Kelly is the woman I love.

This is the bag that I bought. = This is the bag I bought.

However, if the relative pronoun is the subject of the relative clause, it cannot be left out. Here, who refers to the subject.

He’s the man. He found my wallet.

He’s the man who found my wallet.

Therefore, the following sentence is incorrect:

He’s the man found my wallet.

3.Vocabulary Reference

Blue Plaques around London
plaque
(here) a special sign that honours a person or event and is fixed to the wall of a building

dotted around
(here) spread in lots of different places in an area, for example, throughout the streets of London

novelist
someone who writes novels for a job

biopic
a film that tells the story of someone’s life

founder
a person who starts an organisation

composer
a person who writes music

legend
(here) a very famous person

Handel House Museum
Georgian
(here) of the period when Kings George I-IV ruled in Britain (1714–1830)

rehearsal
a practice performance of a play or music

recital
a performance of music by a solo musician or a small group of musicians

up-and-coming
becoming more popular

rewarding
providing satisfaction

Jimi Hendrix
rise to fame
become famous

preserve
keep something in its original state

legacy
memories, ideas, and objects from the past that are important in the present

phenomenal
amazing, unbelievable, fantastic

cope
deal with a difficult situation

interpret
(here) find the meaning of

billboard
a large board which is usually outside and is used for advertising or announcements

Things we treasure
snap
(here) a snapshot, a photograph

envious
jealous

miniature
small

indigenous
coming from a particular place

News Report
romantic
(here) beautiful; having a strong effect on your emotions

landmark
a building or a natural feature which is well-known, or easy to see from a distance

virtual
something you can see or experience through a computer

image
picture

monument
a building, statue or structure which is famous or important

beloved
loved very much

to map
to make a map of something

skyscraper
a very tall building

holidaymaker
someone who is on holiday, or planning a holiday

destination
a place where someone is going, or where they are planning to go

to market
to advertise and tell people about something, in a way which encourages them to buy it

chief executive
the leader of a company or organisation

specialize
to have a lot of skill or knowledge about something

vivid
very colourful and lifelike

Drama
generous
someone who is kinder than expected and offers others help

grateful
thankful

courage
the feeling of not being stopped by fear