‎1. It was because he was ill (that) we decided to return.
2. It's that watch (that) I said I would let you have.
3.‎ It was Jane (who) I first met in the park yesterday.
4. It was in the park (where) I first met Jane.
5. It was yesterday (when) I first met Jane.

Q1) In informal settings, can "that, who, where, when" be left out in the above sentences?

6. There was no doubt that it was my car which had struck Paddy.

Q2) As far as I know, "which" cannot be used in this kind of emphasis sentence, but as you see sentence 6, can "which" be used instead of "that"? I think it can because I was able to find such sentences as 6 in English books seemingly written by native speakers.

More examples
- It was my car which you used as a playground.
- it was my car which hit you

Q3) If Q2 is correct, in informal settings, is it also possible to leave out "which" from sentence 6?

I'm not dealing with whether they're grammatical or not, but just asking whether they're all possible in informal settings.

Question

‎1. It was because he was ill (that) we decided to return.
2. It's that watch (that) I said I would let you have.
3.‎ It was Jane (who) I first met in the park yesterday.
4. It was in the park (where) I first met Jane.
5. It was yesterday (when) I first met Jane.

Q1) In informal settings, can "that, who, where, when" be left out in the above sentences?

6. There was no doubt that it was my car which had struck Paddy.

Q2) As far as I know, "which" cannot be used in this kind of emphasis sentence, but as you see sentence 6, can "which" be used instead of "that"? I think it can because I was able to find such sentences as 6 in English books seemingly written by native speakers.

More examples
- It was my car which you used as a playground. 
- it was my car which hit you

Q3) If Q2 is correct, in informal settings, is it also possible to leave out "which" from sentence 6?

I'm not dealing with whether they're grammatical or not, but just asking whether they're all possible in informal settings.

pearl6527 · Answer

Q1)
1. no
2. yes
3. no
4. yes; but better would be, "It was in the park that I first met Jane"
5. no; this is better (at least to me): "It was yesterday that I first met Jane"

Q2)
6. Here are acceptable sentences:
"There was no doubt that it was my car that/which had struck Paddy."
"There was no doubt it was my car that/which had struck Paddy."
"There was no doubt that the car that/which had struck Paddy was mine."
"There was no doubt the car that/which had struck Paddy was mine."
So, no. Here, "which" cannot be used after "doubt." But you can omit the "that."

Q3)
No, you can't leave out "which," although you can replace it with "that."
These sentences do NOT make sense:
a) "There was no doubt which it was my car which had struck Paddy." (can't use "which" after "doubt")
b) "There was no doubt that it was my car had struck Paddy." (missing "which" before "had struck Paddy")
But you CAN say:
"There was no doubt my car had struck Paddy."

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