Writing Tips: Which Versus That

I have a feeling most people either (1) don't know or (2) don't care about the distinction between which and that. Oh, but a distinction exists, my friends. If you didn't know, I'm here to enlighten you. If you don't care, begin caring immediately, or continue to participate in the degeneration of our language and society. (Was that excessive?)

My motivation for writing these writing tips is to help cultivate the respect words deserve. It would benefit everyone to learn a little bit more about the language you are speaking. I promise you will still be cool if you use words correctly; it's time we stop celebrating laziness and disregard for writing, speaking, spelling, and punctuation. Do pop stars even look up the word before they use it in song (let alone determine its correct conjugation)? Do brand-name companies even check to see if an apostrophe is the correct way to pluralize the word before launching an international advertising campaign? (It's not, by the way. Check out the blog Apostrophe Abuse here. No doubt this will be subject of a future writing tip.) I'm not sure if it's the perpetrators who make me more sad, or the victims who don't care. That's what we are-victims. Instead of dumbing down, let's smarten up, encourage people "look it up." You know how smart you feel when you get the joke on Frasier? Imagine that beautiful feeling happening daily. Join me in the fight.

OK. Back to which vs. that.

Easiest indication: which usually follows a comma; that doesn't.

Which most often refers to the subject brought up in the first part of the sentence.

For example: I like coffee, which I get at Starbucks.

This sentence says that I like coffee in general, and I get it at Starbucks.

Now, if I liked ONLY Starbucks coffee, I would use that.

For example: I like coffee that I get at Starbucks.

This sentence allows me to like no other coffee besides Starbucks.

Fancy talk: that is a restrictive (essential) clause; which is a nonrestrictive (nonessential) clause. That is restricted to the noun it modifies. It limits and distinguishes the noun: the store's sweaters that are on sale are scratchy-only the sweaters on sale are scratchy, and the others are fine. This distinction is essential, because using which would have indicated that all of the store's sweaters are scratchy, and sweaters happen to be on sale. Someone could miss out on a sweet, nonscratchy sweater if which is used. As I said earlier, which is usually preceded by a comma, indicating that is nonrestrictive, extra information.

More examples:

I like Johnny Depp movies that are good.

True, but this allows me to like only his good movies.

I like Johnny Depp movies, which are good.

More true. I like Johnny Depp movies of all grades. Johnny Depp is in the movie, then it is good.

The next time you write "which" or "that" take a moment to think about which one to use This pausing to think is the first step toward learning their correct use. After a few reflections, and a little bit of practice, you'll pick it up. It may even surprise you how natural choosing "which" or "that" becomes. But I have to warn you, once you've learned and understand the distinction, you'll begin to notice how often the words are misused (thus making the sentence mean something different than intended), and you'll be annoyed. Although sometimes it's funny, then you can laugh like you laugh at the joke in Frasier, and you'll feel smart.