NOMINAL RELATIVE CLAUSES [INTRODUCED BY THE RELATIVE PRONOUN WHAT,and the wh-ever pronouns
The pronouns what ,whatever,whichever,whoever can introduce relative clauses.These pronouns don,'t refer back to a thing or a person in the main clause.They contain the thing or person they refer to, because they have meanings such as'anything that','everything that','anyone who,'everyone who','the one that',; the thing that',
For example; WHAT[=the thing that] she cares about most is her career.
Hereis the report-feel free to correct whatever[=anything that] is in accurate.
Both outfits are lovely on you-buy whichever[=the one that] feels more comfortable
I am grateful to whoever[= the person who] washed all the dishes.
*What, whatever,whichever, can also be used as relative determiners to qualify a following noun
The thieves took what money[=all the money that] they could find in the bank.
Whatever food [=any food that ] you require you can take from the fridge.
Extra teaching will be arranged for whichever pupils[=all the pupils that] require help.
Therefore,clauses introduced by what or wh-ever pronouns and determiners are called nominative relative clauses.NOMINAL MEANS HERE RELATING TO NOUNS.
GRAMMARIANS regard a relative that begins with WHAT or one of the wh-ever pronouns or determiners as having the characteristics of both a RELATIVE CLAUSE and a NOUN CLAUSE. It is like a noun clause because it acts as the subject of a verb or the object of a verb or preposition,as in the sentence below;
Whoever broke the window left fingerprints everywhere.[noun clause as the subject of the verb left]
I am grateful to whoever washed all the dishes.[object of the preposition to ]
We shall choose whichever option is the most convenient.[object of the verb choose]
REDUCED RELATIVES IN NON DEFINING CLAUSES. AND IN DEFINING CLAUSES
For instance,
The boy whom/who/that I wanted to see is absent today.
Mrs Jay ,who is the source of mischief ,backbites too much.