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the commas indicate that the clause which was bright red is a non· defining relativeclause. In other words, this sentence implies that it has already been made clear towhich door the speaker or writer is referring, and the clause which was bright redmerely provides additional, descriptive information about the door.Whereas in written English the presence of a non· defining relative clause is indicated bythe use of commas, in spoken English the presence of such a clause is indicated byslightly emphasizing the word immediately preceding the clause, and the last word ofthe clause. In the following example, the emphasized words are underlined.e.g. The door, which was bright red, was very conspicuous.It should be noted that when material written in English is read aloud, the presence of acomma is usually indicated by a slight pause.iL Defining relative clausesWhen a relative clause has the function of defining or identifying the object beingreferred to, the clause is not placed between commas. Such a clause can be called adefining or limiting relative clause.For instance, in the example:The woman who is standing near the window is a doctor.the absence of commas indicates that the clause who is standing near the window is adefining relative clause. In other words, the clause has the function of identifying towhich woman the speaker or writer is referring.See Exercise B .b. ThatWhen used as a relative pronoun, that can refer to either persons or things. Therelative pronoun that is generally used only in defining relative clauses. In the followingexamples, the relative clauses are underlined.e.g. The people that were here yesterday will return in a month.The newspaper that was on the steps belongs to our neighbor.In these examples, that has the antecedents people and newspaper, and introducesthe defining relative clauses that were here yesterday and that was on the steps.In the preceding examples, that acts as the subject of the verbs were and was. When itacts as the object of a verb or preposition, the relative pronoun that can usually beomitted.e.g. The books that we bought are heavy.The town that this road leads to is five miles away.In the first sentence, that acts as the object of the verb bought. In the secondsentence, that acts as the object of the preposition to. The following examples showhow the above sentences can be rewritten without the use of that.The books we bought are heavy.The town this road leads to is five miles away.c. WhichAs was pointed out in an earlier section, when used as an adjective or interrogative