formal use
8.98 In formal English, the preposition can go at the beginning of a clause in front of whom or which.
These are the people to whom Catherine was referring.
…a woman friend with whom Rose used to go for walks.
…questions to which there were no answers.
Note however that you cannot put the preposition at the beginning of a clause in front of who or that.
phrasal verbs
8.99 If the verb in a relative clause is a phrasal verb ending with a preposition, you cannot move the preposition to the beginning of the clause.
…all the things I’ve had to put up with.
…the kind of life he was looking forward to.
There are other problems, which I don’t propose to go into at the moment.
8.100 Words such as some, many, and most can be put in front of of whom or of which at the beginning of a non-defining relative clause.
At the school we were greeted by the teachers, most of whom were women.
It is a language shared by several quite diverse cultures, each of which uses it differently.
Numbers can be put before or after of whom.
They act mostly on suggestions from present members (four of whom are women).
There were 80 patients, of whom only one died.
Using whose
8.101 If you want to talk about something relating to the person, thing, or group you are talking about, you use a relative clause beginning with whose and a noun or noun phrase.
For example, instead of saying I am writing a letter to Nigel. His father is ill, you can say I am writing a letter to Nigel, whose father is ill.
Whose can be used in defining or non-defining clauses.
…workers whose bargaining power is weak.
…anyone whose credit card is stolen.
She asked friends whose opinion she respected.
…a country whose population was growing.
The man, whose identity was not released, was attacked at 10 p.m. last night.
The noun after whose can be the subject or object of the verb in the clause, or it can be the object of a preposition. If it is the object of a preposition, the preposition can come at the beginning or end of the clause.
…the governments in whose territories they operate.
…writers whose company he did not care for.
8.102 In written English, of which and of whom are sometimes used instead of whose. You put these expressions after a noun phrase beginning with the.
For example, instead of writing a town whose inhabitants speak French, you can write a town the inhabitants of which speak French.
…a competition the results of which will be announced today.
I travelled in a lorry the back of which the owner had loaded with yams.
Using other relative pronouns
8.103 Some other words and expressions can be used as relative pronouns.
non-defining clauses
8.104 When and where are used in non-defining clauses (that is, clauses that simply add extra information).
I want to see you at 12 o’clock, when you go to your lunch.
My favourite holiday was in 2009, when I went to Jamaica.
He came from Brighton, where Lisa had once spent a holiday.
She took them up the stairs to the art room, where the brushes and paints had been set out.
defining clauses
8.105 When and where can also be used in defining clauses (that is, clauses that distinguish one noun from all others), but only when the clause is preceded by a particular kind of noun.
When-clauses must be preceded by the word time or by the name of a period of time such as day or year.
There was a time when she thought they were wonderful.
This is the year when the profits should start.
Where-clauses must be preceded by the word place or by the name of a kind of place such as room or street.
…the place where they work.
…the room where I did my homework.
…the street where my grandmother had lived.
Note that place names such as China are proper nouns and so do not need to have defining relative clauses after them.
8.106 Where can also be used in defining clauses after words such as circumstances, point, situation and stage.
Increasing poverty has led to a situation where the poorest cannot afford to have children.
In time we reached a stage where we had more male readers than female ones.
There comes a point where it’s impossible to answer.
Compensation was sometimes granted even in circumstances where no injury had occurred.
8.107 Why is used in defining clauses after the word reason.
That is a major reason why they were such poor countries.
Whereby is used in defining clauses after words such as arrangement and system.
…the new system whereby everyone pays a fixed amount.
Counselling is a process whereby the person concerned can learn to manage the emotional realities that face them.
8.108 Other expressions can be used in defining clauses in place of when, where, why, and whereby.
After time you can use at which instead of when.