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Tim Tucker's Guide to Improving Your Writing and Grammar
T - Z
Browse all topics or choose a letter: A - D | E - H | I - M | N - S | T - Z
that vs. which
Both that and which typically begin clauses that add necessary or useful information to your sentence. The key here is "necessary or useful".
Use that when what follows it is necessary for describing whatever the whole clause refers to. Use which when what follows it is useful or interesting, but not essential, to the description. We'll need some examples to help us out.
This is the jacket that Grandma gave me for Christmas last year. Notice how that is followed by an essential piece of information that differentiates this jacket from any other jacket.
This jacket, which is a bit too small for me now, is the one that Grandma gave me for Christmas last year. Notice how the which introduces a piece of information that may be useful and interesting but isn't really essential.
One tip I've found to be enormously helpful is the "comma trick" for deciding where a which goes. It's likely that you'll feel a natural inclination to pause before a description that needs a which. This pause comes in the form of a comma. The natural pause tells you that what you're about to say likely is an aside or a non-essential comment, or as I said above, "useful or interesting".
You'll rarely find a comma before a that when a description follows it. In fact, I can't think of a case right off hand where you would.
If you're writing in an academic environment, your professors will be far more obsessed about this than the average public reader. One of mine years ago told us all to go on a "which hunt" when proofreading our papers. This gives you some idea that using which incorrectly is the more common error to make.
there vs. their vs. they're
I think when people make this mistake they are (they're!) simply getting their wires crossed when typing. However, it's a very common error.
There either 1) describes a place (away from here), as in The ball went over there, or 2) acts as a single or plural pronoun, as in There is only one way to solve this problem or There are many ways to generate this document.
Their shows possession, as in I went shopping for the kids today. I bought their new clothes for school.
They're is simply a contraction of they are.
which vs. that
See that vs. which above.
who vs. whom
This one is a little trickier.
Who always acts as the subject and whom always acts as the object of a verb.
Example: Who are the people whom you nominated to the Board of Directors?
Who is a little easier since there is usually a verb right next to it (Who are). With whom there's often a noun or pronoun next to it (whom you).
Often rearranging the words helps people figure out which one to use. In this case, answer your own question. The five people on this list are the candidates. I nominated them.
Who then is The five people, which is the subject of that sentence. Then whom you nominated is answered with I nominated them. In this case, whom matches up with them, and them is the object of the verb nominated.
This is difficult, so practice makes perfect!
who's vs. whose
Who's is a contraction (note the apostrophe) of who is; whose is the possessive form of who, as in Whose jacket is this? or I don't know whose this is.
your vs. you're
Your shows possession, as in your book; you're is short for you are.
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