Which or That?

[JediBMC]

One area of grammer I have never quit understood is when to use "which" and when to use "that".

Example:
"This is one factor which may necessitate the change."
or
"This is one factor that may necessitate the change."



-Brian-
I'm not an actor, but I play one on TV.

 

[harebrain]

Ok, JediBMC, now that CC isn't listening anymore, the answer to your original question is that the correct sentence is

"This is one factor that may necessitate the change."

 

[CajunCenturion]

I'm still listening harebrain, I'm just not going to spend any more time discussing an issue that we disagree on.

In any event, let's keep the forum up to established professional standards.

Good Luck
--------------
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As a circle of light increases so does the circumference of darkness around it. - Albert Einstein

 

[harebrain]

Would that be professional as in having the last word?

 

[ESquared]

I have greatly enjoyed the interchange between harebrain and CajunCenturion. I don't at this point have a real opinion about who is right, if either. But I do have one comment:

I think the context of the whole passage could make one or the other of your arguments correct and the other incorrect. Without that context, both of your arguments seem to have merit but they are operating on an isolated sentence. Let's see if we can get some more text from JediBMC.

-------------------

Just for fun:

I hate that that happens!
I don't know which which to use, the blue cardboard one or the green posterboard one.





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It is better to have honor than a good reputation.
(Reputation is what other people think about you. Honor is what you know about yourself.)

 

[CajunCenturion]

You make a good point ESquared. The context of the whole passage will make a difference. The sentence in question begins with "This is the ...". What is the antecendent of the pronoun "this"?

I would also like to say that harebrain and I do disagree on whether or not we are dealing with a restrictive and non-restrictive clause, but that we don't disagree on the basic rules of using "which" and "that". I would not like that to have been lost during our discussion.

ESquared - Did you see my earlier post on euphonic situations?

Given all of the recent conversations, both on and off line with respect to the recent elections, and the political overtones of red and blue, the green which seems preferable at this time.

Good Luck
--------------
To get the most from your Tek-Tips experience, please read FAQ181-2886
As a circle of light increases so does the circumference of darkness around it. - Albert Einstein

 

[ESquared]

In my two fun sentences, none of the thats or whiches can be substituted for the other. Sometimes they do have distinct meaning.

-------------------------------------
It is better to have honor than a good reputation.
(Reputation is what other people think about you. Honor is what you know about yourself.)

 

[CajunCenturion]

Now I'm confused. I first though that you were making a play on words between the homonyms which and witch. But after your last post I'm not so sure. How are you using which in your second sentence?



Good Luck
--------------
To get the most from your Tek-Tips experience, please read FAQ181-2886
As a circle of light increases so does the circumference of darkness around it. - Albert Einstein

 

[ESquared]

I was imagining actual physical cutouts of the word which, something that might be used in a classroom to teach grammar.

-------------------------------------
It is better to have honor than a good reputation.
(Reputation is what other people think about you. Honor is what you know about yourself.)