Who refers to people, which to things and animals, when they add information about a noun: the woman who lives next door, the umbrella which I lost. In questions it works differently: who simply asks about a person, while which asks for a choice from known options. So which is used about people too: Which of you is Anna? Who of you sounds noticeably worse.
who or which — can you pick the right one?
Pick a word and write a sentence — we'll check right away that it fits the meaning and explain any mistakes.
The check is taking longer than usual. Your feedback will appear here automatically.
person + who + verb; thing/animal + which + verb; Who…? (any person); Which + noun…? / Which of you/them…? (choice from a known group)
- The woman who lives next door works as a nurse at the city hospital.
- I lost the umbrella which my grandmother gave me last winter.
- Which of you left the window open in the meeting room?
What changed
First versionI have a friend which works in a bank.
RevisionI have a friend who works in a bank.
Which can look like an all-purpose linking word. But a friend is a person, and English needs who for people. A native speaker wouldn't use which about a person in this kind of description.
When the description isn't separated by commas, that often replaces who and which: a friend that works in a bank, the book that I bought. But if the description is set off by commas and simply adds information, that isn't possible: My brother, who lives in Oslo, visits us every summer.
Your turn
The man ___ fixed our heating yesterday left his phone in the kitchen.
Show the answer
who — The heating was fixed by a repairman, a person, so who. Which works for things and animals, not for the man who did the repair.
Describe a person who helped you with your studies or work. Use who and say how exactly they helped.
My first manager was a woman who taught me to plan my week and check every report twice.
Learn to use new words without mistakes
Write phrases with the words you are learning. LetsWords shows mistakes in usage and grammar, suggests corrections and explains them, and review helps the words stick.