Author: Kirk

“That” vs. “Which”

Common English Blunders, Pronouns, Versus

I often see “which” where “that” is appropriate.

Problem:
The pronoun “which” is not interchangeable with the pronoun “that”.

Explanation:
Some speakers and writers tend to favor “which” over “that” because they believe that “which” sounds more elegant or sophisticated than “that”. Unfortunately, most of the time they should use “that” instead of “which”.

When used to introduce a clause, these two pronouns are not interchangeable. Only one of these examples is correct: Nobody likes a cat that scratches. vs. Nobody likes a cat which scratches. The first example is correct.

One way to remember which pronoun to use (no pun intended) is to see whether you can put the clause inside commas. You would not write Nobody likes a cat, which scratches. because you need the scratching behavior to identify the cat. The comma in this example tells the reader that the clause is unnecessary, which is not your intent. The clause is necessary to identify the cat. You should instead write Nobody likes a cat that scratches. (notice the lack of commas).

Here are two more examples, and each shows correct use of “that” or “which”:

  • Joe’s car, which could go from zero to sixty miles per hour in three seconds, won the contest for the fastest car on the drag strip.
  • The car that won the contest for the fastest car on the drag strip was Joe’s car.

Notice that we can remove the “which” clause and its commas without destroying the significant point of the first example: Joe’s car won the contest for the fastest car on the drag strip.

Solution:
Use “that” when when you must keep the (“that”) clause to maintain the point of the sentence. Use “which” when you can maintain the point of the sentence after dropping the (“which”) clause. Also, make sure that “that” clauses do not go inside commas and that “which” clauses do go inside commas.

“… , sort of speak.”

Common English Blunders, Idioms

I heard this in a conference call.

Problem:
This is a mispronunciation of an idiom often heard in American English.

Explanation:
The speaker in the conference call was trying to indicate to use a manner of speaking at the end of his statement.

Instead, he probably was unaware of the correct words in the idiom.

So he pronounced what he probably believed that he had heard others say.

Solution:
“… , so to speak.”

“The website is growing everyday.”

Adjectives, Adverbs, Common English Blunders

I saw this in an email message.

Problem:
“Everyday” is an adjective, but an adverb is required here.

Explanation:
“Everyday” tells you what. For example, an “everyday occurrence” is something that occurs daily. In other words, “everyday” is an adjective; it modifies a noun (such as “occurrence”).

In contrast, “every day” tells you when. For example, “It happens every day.” The goal of the email message writer is to tell the reader when the website is growing.

Solution:
“The website is growing every day.”