Exercise 8: Commas With Who And Which

  • Common Core ELA
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| By Eleanor Dickey
Eleanor Dickey, History & Literature
Eleanor is a distinguished Professor of Classics at the University of Reading in the UK, specializing in the study of classical literature, history, and culture.
Quizzes Created: 9 | Total Attempts: 2,053
| Attempts: 153 | Questions: 20 | Updated: Aug 23, 2025
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1. The most dangerous prisoners who are typically serving long sentences are kept in separate prisons.

Explanation

"Who are typically serving long sentences" is parenthetical; if you remove it, the meaning of the sentence does not change significantly.

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About This Quiz
Exercise 8: Commas With Who And Which - Quiz

This quiz evaluates the understanding of using commas with 'who' and 'which' in sentences, focusing on correct punctuation without commas.

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2. My mother who is a doctor has told me to get a flu shot this year.

Explanation

"Who is a doctor" is parenthetical: if you remove it, the meaning of the sentence does not change significantly. Using this clause without commas suggests that the speaker has more than one mother, so that the relevant one can be identified by her profession.

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3. Home ownership which used to be a widely accessible goal is now becoming the preserve of the lucky few.

Explanation

"Which used to be a widely accessible goal" is parenthetical: if you remove it, the meaning of the sentence does not change significantly.

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4. We have no works surviving from the poets who lived before Homer.

Explanation

"Who lived before" and even "Who lived before Homer" are not parenthetical: if you remove either of those, the meaning of the sentence changes significantly.

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5. The ancient Greek tragedies which were written thousands of years ago are still performed today.

Explanation

"Which were written thousands of years ago" is parenthetical: if you remove it, the meaning of the sentence does not change significantly, since by definition all ancient Greek tragedies were written thousands of years ago.

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6. Students who study Classics have more fun than other students.

Explanation

"Who study Classics" is not parenthetical: if you remove it, the meaning of the sentence changes significantly.

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7. I love to read the works of Homer who created magnificent epics.

Explanation

"Who created magnificent epics" is parenthetical: if you remove it, the meaning of the sentence does not change significantly, since there is only one Homer. If in fact you wanted to argue that there are two Homers, one who composed epics and one who did not, you would need to say "the Homer who created...".

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8. The Dutch who now all learn English in school write English better than we do.

Explanation

"Who now all learn English in school" is parenthetical: if you remove it, the meaning of the sentence does not change significantly. Using this clause without commas suggests that only some Dutch people now learn English in school, but that is at variance with the "all".

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9. People who stay up all night are usually exhausted the next day.

Explanation

"Who stay up all night" is not parenthetical: if you remove it, the meaning of the sentence changes significantly.

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10. The philosophers who lived before Socrates are known as pre-Socratics.

Explanation

"Who lived before Socrates" is not parenthetical: if you remove it, the meaning of the sentence changes significantly.

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11. Greeks who speak Turkish are rarely Christians.

Explanation

"Who speak Turkish" is not parenthetical: if you remove it, the meaning of the sentence changes significantly.

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12. Houses which have thatched roofs require re-thatching every few decades.

Explanation

"Which have thatched roofs" is not parenthetical: if you remove it, the meaning of the sentence changes significantly.

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13. I would love to find all the Greek tragedies which have been lost.

Explanation

"Which have been lost" is not parenthetical: if you remove it, the meaning of the sentence changes significantly.

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14. Canadians who have a bilingual country are individually monolingual.

Explanation

"Who have a bilingual country" is parenthetical: if you remove it, the meaning of the sentence does not change significantly. Using this clause without commas suggests that only some Canadians have a bilingual country, but the country belongs to them all equally.

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15. I think we should throw away this meat which has passed its sell-by date.

Explanation

"Which has passed its sell-by date" is parenthetical: if you remove it, the meaning of the sentence does not change significantly. Using this clause without commas suggests that only some of this meat is out of date.

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16. Canadians who live in Quebec all speak French.

Explanation

"Who live in Quebec" is not parenthetical: if you remove it, the meaning of the sentence changes significantly.

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17. Meat which has passed its sell-by date often turns interesting colours.

Explanation

"Which has passed its sell-by date" is not parenthetical: if you remove it, the meaning of the sentence changes significantly.

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18. The books which you can find in a library have usually been vetted by librarians.

Explanation

"Which you can find in a library" is not parenthetical: if you remove it, the meaning of the sentence changes significantly.

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19. People who share 40% of their DNA with yeast have more in common with other species than we used to realize.

Explanation

"Who share 40% of their DNA with yeast" is parenthetical; if you remove it, the meaning of the sentence does not change significantly. Without the commas this sentence would imply that only some people share 40% of their DNA with yeast, but the sharing of DNA is a species-wide phenomenon.

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20. I envy the Classics students who get to read ancient texts.

Explanation

"Who get to read ancient texts" is parenthetical: if you remove it, the meaning of the sentence does not change significantly. Using this clause without commas suggests that only some Classics students get to read ancient texts.

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The most dangerous prisoners who are typically serving long sentences...
My mother who is a doctor has told me to get a flu shot this year.
Home ownership which used to be a widely accessible goal is now...
We have no works surviving from the poets who lived before Homer.
The ancient Greek tragedies which were written thousands of years ago...
Students who study Classics have more fun than other students.
I love to read the works of Homer who created magnificent epics.
The Dutch who now all learn English in school write English better...
People who stay up all night are usually exhausted the next day.
The philosophers who lived before Socrates are known as pre-Socratics.
Greeks who speak Turkish are rarely Christians.
Houses which have thatched roofs require re-thatching every few...
I would love to find all the Greek tragedies which have been lost.
Canadians who have a bilingual country are individually monolingual.
I think we should throw away this meat which has passed its sell-by...
Canadians who live in Quebec all speak French.
Meat which has passed its sell-by date often turns interesting...
The books which you can find in a library have usually been vetted by...
People who share 40% of their DNA with yeast have more in common with...
I envy the Classics students who get to read ancient texts.
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