Search from various English teachers...
[Deleted]
Are my sentences correct? Fingerprints are something which we use to identify people. A rope is something which we use to bind something. Handcuffs are something which we use to shackle the thief. A lawyer is a woman who defenses the accusatory. A judge is a man who works in the court. A policeman is a man who looks after the order in the city. Thank you very much!

Answers · 2

1
Fingerprints are something which we use to identify people.(Perfect) A rope is something which we use to bind something. (Perfect) Handcuffs are something which we use to shackle the thief. (Good but would be better to say "Handcuffs are something which we use to shackle a thief.) A lawyer is a woman who defenses the accusatory.(Bad. "A lawyer is a person who defends the accused." But of course that's not all lawyers do....) A judge is a man who works in the court. (Grammatically correct, but better to say "A judge is a person who oversees a court of law." A policeman is a man who looks after the order in the city. (Grammatically correct)
0
Good work! 1 ("Fingerprints") -- Most English speakers would prefer to use "that" instead of "which" here. This is an "essential" clause ("that we use to identify people"), which means that if you left this clause out the meaning of the sentence would change. "Which" is almost always used for non-essential clauses -- clauses which do not inherently change the meaning of the sentence, and are typically separated from the rest of the sentence by commas (an easy trick!). 2 ("rope") -- Again, "that" sounds better than "which" here. I'd also suggest replacing one of the "somethings" with a more specific noun or noun clause. Perhaps replacing the first "something" with "a cord or similar object," or the second "something" with "something else" or "one or more other objects" 3 ("handcuffs") -- Again, I'd use "that" here -- it is an essential clause. This is a great little article with some tricks to using "that" and "which" -- as I said, there is actually a bit more flexibility in their usage, but if you follow these rules you will be safe! http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/which-versus-that.aspx 4 ("lawyer") -- This should be "A lawyer is someone who defends the accused" -- however, this isn't actually correct, because a lawyer could also prosecute the defendant, draw up contracts, or do a whole host of other activities. 5 ("judge") -- Grammatically this is correct, but the sense is not accurate. A judge does not have to be a man, and you should get more specific than "works in the court" -- the judge is in charge of the courtroom. Can you try re-wording this sentence with those things in mind? 6 ("policeman") -- Good work here! I don't take issue with anything in this sentence. In fact, I find it quite a poetic definition of a policeman! Please let me know if you have any questions.

Still haven’t found your answers?

Write down your questions and let the native speakers help you!

Don’t miss out on the opportunity to learn a language from the comfort of your own home. Browse our selection of experienced language tutors and enroll in your first lesson now!

Start Learning Today