That versus which
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That versus which is a word choice in grammar that is too-often done incorrectly.
"That" is a restrictive modifier necessary to identify the noun. Examples include:
- The book that I enjoyed the most was A Choice Not an Echo.
- The movie that is most conservative among modern musicals was Grease (1978).
Rarely is there proper usage of "that" immediately after a comma, because the noun needs to be identified before the comma.
"Which" is for a non-restrictive, non-essential description of a noun, and is often preceded by a comma. Examples include:
- The 2024 presidential election, which is the most important in a century, could be decided by only a few swing states.
- The New Testament, which is the greatest collection of books ever written, can be easily read in merely a few months.