grammar · neutral
reduced non‑defining relative clause with participle (N, V‑ing, ...)
Non‑defining relative clauses can be reduced to participle phrases set off by commas: e.g., 'My brother, living in HCMC, ...' (present participle) or 'The book, written in 1999, ...' (past participle).
Examples
“The professor, known for his clear lectures, retired last year.”
“My sister, working in finance, moved to Singapore.”
“Incorrect: The professor known for his clear lectures retired last year (if you want to keep the extra info clearly non‑restrictive you need commas).”
Band 8 sentence
“The committee, chaired by an independent expert, produced a balanced report with clear recommendations.”
Collocations
- known for
- working in
Common mistakes
My father working in a bank is strict.→My father, working in a bank, is strict.
The report written last month has issues.→The report, written last month, has issues.
Say it for a higher band
5omit commas incorrectly→6use participle reduction but mix restrictive/non‑restrictive→7+use participle reduction correctly with commas and meaning
Easily confused
reduced restrictive (no commas)
“The students studying in room 5 must register.”
reduced non‑defining (with commas)
“My neighbour, studying part‑time, finished her degree.”
Related words
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In Relative clauses
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