Correct usage of the word that

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   Pick «who» or «whom» for people. You use «who» when the pronoun refers to people. A pronoun is just a word that refers back to a noun, such as in these two sentences: «Robert ate an apple. He threw the core away.» «He» refers back to «Robert.» Therefore, when the pronoun refers back to a person, you use «who.»^[1]
   

   • For example, you would say, «Robert, who was trying to lose weight, ate apples.» «Who» refers back to «Robert,» which is why you use «who» instead of «that.»

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   Use «that» or «which» for things. When the pronoun refers back to something that is not a person, such as a thing, then you switch to «that» or «which.» In other words, use «that» with objects, places, and so on instead of «who.»^[2]
   

   • Therefore, you would write, «The apple that was bruised tasted bad.» «That» refers back to «the apple,» which is why you use «that» instead of «who.»

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   Know the exception. In some cases, you can use «that» for people, generally in informal speech and writing. However, it is often frowned upon, particularly in formal writing. Therefore, try to stick to using «who» for people when writing, especially when writing something requiring formal writing, such as an essay.^[3]
   

   • For example, you might say, «The lady over there that ordered the coffee wants some sugar.» However, you generally don’t write that way. Instead, you’d write, «The lady who ordered the coffee wants some sugar.»

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   Pick «that» for things in restrictive clauses. A restrictive clause is one that is necessary to the sentence. It limits (restricts) a subject. In other words, it narrows down the identity of something, so it’s necessary to the meaning of the sentence. When using restrictive clauses, you don’t need commas to set off the clause.^[4]
   

   • For example, you would write, «The fruit that we ate at dinner tasted bad.» «That we ate at dinner» narrows down which fruit you’re talking about, so it is restrictive and necessary to the sentence. Think of it this way: Does all fruit taste bad? No, just the fruit you ate at dinner, so the clause is necessary to the sentence.
   • In other words, restrictive clauses will alter the meaning of the sentence.^[5]
     

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   Choose «which» for nonrestrictive clauses. A nonrestrictive clause adds information to the sentence, but it doesn’t narrow down the meaning. In addition, these types of clauses aren’t necessary to the sentence for it to make sense. They provide extra information, so they are set off by a comma or commas.^[6]
   

   • For example, you would write, «The fruit that we ate at dinner tasted bad, which upset me.» «Which upset me» adds information to the sentence. However, it doesn’t restrict the subject, nor is it necessary.
   • Here’s another example: «The television, which was expensive when we bought it, was showing signs of age.» «Which was expensive when we bought it» doesn’t narrow down which television. It just adds information.
   • Note that «who» can be used in both restrictive and nonrestrictive clauses. The only difference is the punctuation.

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   Use «that» to describe an object in a statement. «That» can serve another function. It can also be used as an adjective. An adjective describes a noun. In this case, the adjective is used to indicate which object the person is referring to, as in, «That cat is the one that ate my sandwich.»^[7]
   

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   Pick «which» to describe an object in a sentence. «Which» can also serve as an adjective. However, it is usually used in a question rather than a statement to figure out something about an object. For instance, you might ask, «Which cat ate the sandwich?»^[8]
   

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   Use «who» or «whoever» when the pronoun is the subject. A subject is the person doing the action. You can have a subject of an independent clause or a dependent clause. In both cases, you would use «who» if the pronoun is the subject of the clause, meaning it does the action.^[9]
   

   • An independent clause has a subject and a verb, and it can stand on its own. For instance, «Rob ate fries,» is an independent clause. «Rob» is the subject, and «ate» is the verb.
   • A dependent clause has a subject and a verb, but it can’t stand on its own. It must be attached to a dependent clause to make sense. For example, «because he likes them» is a dependent clause. It has a subject («he») and a verb («likes»), but it needs an independent clause to make sense: «Rob ate fries because he likes them.»
   • Therefore, in either a dependent or independent clause, use «who» or «whoever» when the pronoun is the subject. In question form, an example is «Who ate the cookies?» «Who» is the doing the action, even though you don’t know «who» is. In fact, if you think of it as a statement, it makes more sense: «Who ate the cookies.»^[10]
     
   • Another example, with a dependent clause, is, «She loved to sing to whoever was around.» «Whoever» acts as the subject in «whoever was around.»

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   Pick «whom» or «whomever» when the pronoun is the object. The object is who (or what) the action is being done to. In the previous example, «Rob ate fries,» «fries» is the object of the sentence because Rob is eating them. Independent clauses, dependent clauses, and even phrases (such as prepositional phrases) can have objects, though not all do.^[11]
   

   • Choose «whom» or «whomever» when the question is asking what person is on the receiving end of the action, such as, «Whom did she say ate the cookies?» If you turn it into a statement, you can see how «whom» is the object: «She said whom ate the cookies.»
   • Pick «whomever» when it’s the object of a dependent or independent clause, such as, «We like whomever you pick.»
   • «Whomever» can also be the object of a preposition: «She likes to run with whomever.» «Whomever» is the object of «with.»^[12]
     

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   Choose «whose» when you’re trying to show possession. «Whose» is a pronoun that shows possession, much like «his» or «hers.» Therefore, you use «whose» when you’re trying to figure out who owns something, such a book or a drink.^[13]
   

   • For example, you’d say, «Whose sandwich is this?» «Whose» is showing possession of the sandwich.

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   Trying replacing the pronoun with another one to figure it out. When in doubt, try substituting in other pronouns, such as «he,» «him,» and «his» to figure out whether to use «who,» «whom,» or «whose.» It can make it easier, as these pronouns are more common.^[14]
   

   • For example, in the sentence, «Who ate the cookies?» you’d replace it with «he» ate the cookies, the subjective pronoun, so you use «who.»
   • In «She likes to run with whomever,» you’d replace it with «him,» as in, «She likes to run with him.» Therefore, you use the objective case, «whom.»
   • In «Whose sandwich is this?» you need to turn it around to a statement: «This is whose sandwich.» You’d say, «This is his sandwich,» which is why you use «whose.»

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• Remember «who» refers to people and «that» refers to things.