A correspondent in 1986 wanted us to help him choose between two sentences containing of which; he had used of which to refer to the word house, he said, and had not used whose because it is "not formal". Every sentence has at least one clause in it. The clause in the first sentence cannot be left out. Here are two examples. Now, there are two different types of clausesthat we need for this lesson. offers professional writing lesson videos for all levels of writers! Yes – it’s a little quiz! Take out what comes between or after the comma and the sentence’s essential message is the same. In the first sentence, the reader is introduced to a yard that needs mowing. 3. In the first sentence, we would use that because the clause at the end of the sentence is essential to the sentence itself. I came in second, which gets me a red ribbon. If you took out the clause, the reader would still have “Our yard could use a good mowing.” This makes the clause in this sentence nonessential which means it should start with the word which. See? Now, look at the second sentence. The essential clause is also known as the restrictive or defining clause. What it’s going to come down to is your intent. The kid ___ was hanging around after school got arrested. Thanks! I’m going to write two likely sentences and leave the which vs. that choice blank. In this sentence, the clause marked in bold lettering is nonessential because you could remove it and the sentence wouldn’t lose its essential meaning. Dogs ___ have spots are adopted more often than solid color dogs. : By these means a device is obtained, the ground of which is composed of green or English gold, with inlayings of silver and fine gold. Our yard, which has the big rose bushes, could use a good mowing. Also notice that the clause has been set apart by the use of commas. However, without that essential clause, the reader is left wondering why in the world this woman is going to get a big surprise when she gets home. Commas either bookend or begin a nonessential clause. My chair, which is older than dirt, squeaks every time I move. The additional information that the uncle lives on a horse ranch is irrelevant to the sentence. Now, there are two different types of clauses that we need for this lesson. Sure, you could remove the essential clause marked in bold lettering and still have a sentence. The essential clause of the sentence tells why the woman will be surprised – because she forgot her purse. There are many books in our school library, two of which I'm quite interested in. You would also put a comma to separate the clause from the rest of the sentence. When it’s used in a sentence, it is an essential part of that sentence. My uncle, who lives on a horse ranch, is going to bring my birthday present next week. The woman will get a big surprise when she gets home. How do you know if you should use which or that? Become a better writer. That meaning being the fact that the writer is expecting a birthday present next week from his wonderful uncle. The one I’m talking about is the grammatical clause. Otherwise, you would use that. Let’s say you’re writing for the school newspaper about a big football game coming up. For instance, ‘that which you cannot see’. If you remember, a clause is a group of words that has a subject and a predicate. What’s it for? But still, most people really do not understand the proper use of these two leaders of clauses. All Rights Reserved. I know it can be tricky but basically, the rule of thumb is if the clause can be taken out of the sentence and still keep the sentence’s meaning, use which. I know it’s a subtle difference – but stick with me. The musical ___ is my favorite, is “Cats.”. Stanley, the running back, was out sick so his friend Freddie brought him a copy of the booklet, which contained the plays. However, they are still sticking with the rule that if you are going to use the word that, then you need to only use it for the essential clauses. Our yard that has the big rose bushes could use a good mowing. Find out more here. The woman who forgot her purse will get a big surprise when she gets home. These clauses are also known as non-restrictive or non-defining clauses. It specifies which yard needs mowing. As you can probably guess, the nonessential clause carries that name because you could remove it from a sentence and the sentence would be just fine without it. I bring up the subject of clauses because they are essential in understanding whether to use which vs. that in any given sentence. (Merriam-Webster 959) Yes, there is a Santa Claus, but that’s not the one we’ll be discussing today. Can You End a Sentence with a Preposition? If you are a Premium Magoosh student and would like more personalized service from our instructors, you can use the Help tab on the Magoosh dashboard. If you remember, a clause is a group of words that has a subject and a predicate. The misinformation that passes for gospel wisdom about English usage is sometimes astounding. Yes, there is a Santa Claus, but that’s not the one we’ll be discussing today. Therefore, you would use the word which in the second sentence. Well, I’m here today to clear all of that up. Simply put, you use that for essential clauses and which for everything else. In this sentence, the reader is led to believe that there is only one yard. Magoosh blog comment policy: To create the best experience for our readers, we will only approve comments that are relevant to the article, general enough to be helpful to other students, concise, and well-written! Sometimes, if you have already used ‘that’ in a sentence, you may choose to write ‘which’ in order to avoid repetition of the word ‘that’. Do you want to know a secret for spotting nonessential clauses easily? The one I’m talking about is the grammatical clause. We highly encourage students to help each other out and respond to other students' comments if you can! I won’t tell you which one is correct though. The biggest of them was 20 pounds. In this sentence, ‘which’ is used because ‘that’ was already used and you cannot write two ‘that’ words in a sentence. I'm quite interested in two of them. (Good luck with that one!) : In scholasticism, Ockham advocated reform in both method and content, the aim of which was simplification. If you removed it, you would just have “The coach gave the booklet to the players.” Wait. Let’s see how you do. Now, in the second sentence, you have already established what the booklet is for in the first sentence. Yesterday, my friend and I caught a lot of fish. The big rose bushes are almost an afterthought. I bring up the subject of clauses because they are essential in understanding whether to use which vs. that in any given sentence. Which witch did that witch wish with? You see the difference? Now, look at the sentence above. The decision of when to use which vs. that has plagued mankind for centuries. Here are some more sentences so you can practice a little. However, most professional writers, especially legal writers, still adhere to the rules outlined here, and I recommend you do too. Due to the high volume of comments across all of our blogs, we cannot promise that all comments will receive responses from our instructors. See how many you can get right. The answers are below the questions. That or which? So far we have covered how to determine if something you are reading is correct. If you were to remove the essential clause, the meaning of the sentence would change dramatically. There are many books in our school library. Sales Copywriting: 3 Tips to Anticipate Buyer Concerns. I sang the National Anthem ___ was a privilege. The way the reader knows which yard needs mowing is by the use of the essential clause “that has the big rose bushes.” This brings the reader to the conclusion that the owner of the yard has multiple yards but only one of them has the big rose bushes. © 2020 Professional Writing. P.S. This means that the sentence couldn’t live without the clause. Which or that? Every sentence has at least one clause in it. But what if you are the honored writer who has to create the masterpiece? Only two other 1297 exemplifications survive, one of which is held in the UK's National Archives. The clause at the end of the second sentence is now nonessential. Just kidding! After superlatives (the best, the biggest etc.) Sign up or log in to Magoosh Professional Writing. Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary is one of the authorities giving this practice their seal of approval. OK, it was more like a day and a half. What booklet? You need to be sure of what are you intending to say in the sentence, and whether or not the specifics that you are including in the sentence are important. Therefore, it is an essential clause and needs to begin with the word that.

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