These two words are often used incorrectly, and it’s not too hard to understand when you want that instead of which. The word that is used with what’s called a restrictive clause—meaning the phrase that’s following this word is necessary to the meaning of the sentence. For example:
- All the books that are about dogs are on that shelf. [This means every book about dogs is on the shelf.]
- I went to see the movie that had a lot of singing. [This means you specifically chose a movie with singing as opposed to another movie without singing.]
- He liked my novel that reminded him of home. [This means this novel reminded him of home as opposed to others that didn’t.] Continue Reading…
