Compound relatives combine an antecedent and a relative word and function as noun clauses or adverbial clauses.
Basic Rules
Noun clauses (a person or thing that〜): whoever (anyone who〜), whatever (anything that〜), whichever (either one)
“Whoever breaks the rules will be punished.” = Anyone who breaks...
“Take whatever you need.” = Take anything that you need.
Adverbial clauses (even if〜): whenever / wherever / however / whatever / whoever
“Wherever you go, I'll follow you.”
“However hard you try, you won't beat him.” ← however + adjective/adverb
Whoever said that was wrong. ← Noun clause
However tired I am, I never skip breakfast. ← Adverbial clause
Whenever you visit, you're always welcome.
Points to Note
① Word order with however: however + adjective/adverb + S + V. “However tired you are, ...” ← The adjective tired comes directly after however.
② Rewriting with no matter + interrogative: however = no matter how, whoever = no matter who, wherever = no matter where.
③ Difference between whichever and whatever: whichever has a limited number of choices, while whatever has no restrictions.
- whoever/whatever/whichever: noun clauses (any person or thing that〜)
- whenever/wherever/however: adverbial clauses (even if〜)
- Word order: however + adjective/adverb + S + V
- They can be rewritten using no matter + interrogative
Practice
- Translate “No matter how difficult it is, please do not give up” into English using however.
- Rewrite the following using no matter: Wherever she goes, she makes friends easily.
- Translate “You may take whatever you need” into English using whatever.