School Grammar of 'when' and other Relative Adverbs

Abstract

The word 'When' is classified as a relative adverb and a conjunction, besides an interrogative adverb, in the majority of Japanese-English dictionaries. In American dictionaries, on the other hand, no mention is given of a relative adverb as regards 'when', although 'what' is explained as a compound relative pronoun and 'Which' as a relative. The contributor excoriates the grammatical concept of the relative adverb, and finding practically no substance in its core, proceeds to claim that the expulsion of the relative adverb from the classroom will very much relieve students out of the grammatical labyrinth on their way to acquiring English proficiency.