[Grammar] what-an interrogative or a relative pronoun

[forinfo]

Hi,

I have a question about the word "what". Sometimes I find it difficult to tell
whether it is an interrogative or a relative pronoun.

My grammar book says that in the two following sentences
"what" is a relative pronoun.
1. We had to write what we talked about our pets.
2. I checked what he had given me at first.

It gives another example and says in this sentence,

3. I don't know what he wants.

"what" is an interrogative.

Can't the word what in 1 & 2 be seen as either way-an interrogative or a relative pronoun?
Also, I wonder if what in no.3 can be seen as a relative pronoun as well.

 

[TheParser]

1. We had to write what we talked about our pets.



3. I don't know what he wants.

NOT A TEACHER


Hello, Forinfo:

1. I have read #1 several times. I believe that you either copied the sentence incorrectly, or the writer wrote an incorrect sentence.

a. This is how I would revise that sentence: "We had to write about what we said about our pets."

b. My books tell me that when "what" is a relative pronoun, it = that which.

c. Let's substitute "that which" for "what": "We had to write about that which we said about our pets."

It seems to work.

2. My book gives this sentence: "I wonder what he will say.

a. It calls "what" an interrogative pronoun. The direct question is "What will he say?"

b. The indirect question "what he will say" becomes the object of the verb "wonder."

c. Your direct question is "What does he want?"

d. The indirect question " what he wants"" becomes the object of the verb "know."


Source: House and Harman, Descriptive English Grammar (copyright 1931 and 1950).

 

[Roman55]

Exactly. It means 'I don't know what [it is that] he wants'.

 

[PaulMatthews]

Hi,

I have a question about the word "what". Sometimes I find it difficult to tell
whether it is an interrogative or a relative pronoun.

My grammar book says that in the two following sentences
"what" is a relative pronoun.
1. We had to write what we talked about our pets.
2. I checked what he had given me at first.

It gives another example and says in this sentence,

3. I don't know what he wants.

"what" is an interrogative.

Can't the word what in 1 & 2 be seen as either way-an interrogative or a relative pronoun?
Also, I wonder if what in no.3 can be seen as a relative pronoun as well.

It can be both.

As a relative pronoun it has the meaning "the thing which", so I checked what he had given me means I checked the thing which he had given me. When used this way "what" is sometimes called a 'fused' relative word, and the constituent what he had given me is a noun phrase.

In your third example "what" is an interrogative word introducing the subordinate interrogative clause "what he wants". It is not understood as meaning that I’m not personally familiar with the thing he wants, but that "I don’t know the answer to the question 'What does he want?"'. Subordinate interrogatives express questions, but do not themselves ask them.

 

[PaulMatthews]

As I said, interrogative subordinate clauses do not ask questions directly, rather they express questions, hence no question mark. In I don't know what he wants,there is no fusion between a head and a relativized element. It's not understood as denoting a thing (the thing he wants), but rather "I don't have a clue what it is that he wants; it could be anything. The main clause equivalent would be What does he want?

 

[forinfo]

Thank you all for you replies.

They gave me a clearer understanding about the questions surrounding
whether "what" is a relative pronoun or an interrogative, or both.