Grammar rules: Which vs. that

Hello, just checking in again after what has been an embarrassingly long no-blogging period.

Since you last heard from me, I've graduated (and started a big girl job!). I’m back - hopefully more regularly now - since I have no more essays to write (yippee).

And this post is about the confusion that arises when which/that are used as relative pronouns to introduce adjective clauses. Basically, even as an English grad I sometimes muck it up and figured a little ‘how-to’ might help others as it did me.

 

So which word do we use in what context?

> If removing the words that follow would change the meaning of the sentence, use 'that.' Otherwise, 'which' is fine.

Still unsure?

That : Restrictive clause

Don't let the jargon confuse you.

Restrictive clause simply means part of the sentence that you can't get rid of without the sentence becoming nonsensical.

-          Essentially it RESTRICTS the sentence

 Which : Non-restrictive clause

Unlike restrictive clauses, a non-restrictive clause can be removed from the sentence without changing the meaning.

Here are some examples:

• Our house [that has a red door] is for sale.
• Our house, [which has a red door], is for sale.

These sentences are not the same. 

In the first sentence, the use of that implies that we own multiple houses and therefore clarification is needed to tell you about a specific house – one with a red door. We cannot leave out ‘that has a red door’ because it is essential to your understanding of the sentence - that is, you wouldn't know which one of our houses is for sale without it. 

The second sentence implies that we own only one house and we are simply telling you - in case you want to know - that it happens to have a red door. This information could be omitted and the sentence would still make sense.

Further examples:

• Our office [that has two bathrooms] is located in Maidenhead.
• Our office, [which has two bathrooms], is located in Maidenhead. 

Like the previous example, the first sentence implies that there are multiple offices. If the clause: ‘that has two bathrooms’ were omitted the clause, we would be left with "Our office is located in Maidenhead," – and this would not be accurate since it would imply that ALL the offices are bright and cheerful. In this sentence, therefore, the adjective clause is essential to the meaning of the sentence. 

In the second sentence, the which clause is, again, nonessential (or non-restrictive). It is suggested that there are multiple offices, but only the one with two bathrooms is located in Maidenhead. And you can’t remove the that clause without changing the meaning.

Rule: which clauses are non restrictive (nonessential) while that clauses are restrictive (essential).

Thanks for reading! Check out my last post: https://georgi3porgi3.blogspot.com/2018/02/less-or-fewer.html