ABSTRACT
Subordinate clause which is dependent on a noun or pronoun, is usually introduced by a relative pronoun or relative adverb, and can refer to various elements (or even a whole sentence) except for the predicate. Depending on the semantic/pragmatic function, a distinction is usually made between defining/ restrictive and amplifying/non-restrictive relative clauses. Restrictive clauses limit the set of possible objects the noun specified by the clause can refer to: Here is the book that you were looking for (and none other than that one), while amplifying clauses specify their referent more exactly: Napoleon, who came from Corsica, was exiled to Elba. These two types of clause, which often allow for two or more interpretations, can be distinguished from one another by examining the following characteristics of the surface structure: in restrictive clauses, which are always a part of a definite description, the referent can be emphasized by using a demonst rative pronoun (that book, which), while in non-restrictive clauses the referent is often a proper noun or personal pronoun, and the whole sentence can usually be modified by adding words or phrases such as apparently or as is well known, which underline its purely attributive character. In addition, non-restrictive clauses are optional, while defining clauses are obligatory. This distinction is also supported by various intonational properties.
