Question

Which sentence contains an underlined restrictive clause?

The books that are stacked neatly on the top shelf belong to my great-grandfather.
The girl who broke the downstairs window with a baseball is knocking on the front door.
The store allowed the items that were purchased less than thirty days ago to be returned.
The restaurant, which had its grand opening two months ago, is always crowded.

Answer 1

Three of them do. Sentences 1, 2, and 3 contain restrictive (essential) clauses; sentence 4 contains a nonrestrictive clause.

- 1: "that are stacked neatly on the top shelf" — restrictive (no commas; specifies which books).
- 2: "who broke the downstairs window with a baseball" — restrictive (identifies which girl).
- 3: "that were purchased less than thirty days ago" — restrictive (limits which items).
- 4: "which had its grand opening two months ago" — nonrestrictive (set off by commas; extra information).