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Specific case of which and that - Experts Opinion please

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Specific case of which and that - Experts Opinion please

by shekhar.kataria » Fri Feb 10, 2012 5:42 am
Sometimes i face issues with the usage of pronouns "which" and "that" in referring back to the immediate preceding noun.

More precisely i face this issue when there is a noun in the form of OF construction such as Some of the machines, The globalization of the industry etc etc.

Below is the Question with the official Explanations.

Some scientists suggest the moon had been formed out of part of the Earth, which was dislodged perhaps by a meteor.
1 the moon had been formed out of part of the Earth, which was dislodged perhaps
2 that the moon was formed from part of the Earth that had perhaps been dislodged

My Doubt:- According to me both Which and that in 1 and 2 resp refers back to the earth whereas Official Explanation Says that in the 2nd sentence that refers to the the whole precedding subject i.e part of the earth.

Is there any way to figure out when to refer to part of the subject and when to whole subject. Experts opinion please.
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by shekhar.kataria » Fri Feb 10, 2012 9:55 am
Anyone??
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by avik.ch » Sat Feb 11, 2012 6:18 am
The reference is meaning dependent.

1. the earth was dislodged -- this is wrong. Its the part of the earth that was dislodged.

2. same for "that".

The prepositional phrases are adjective here - noun + adjective ( prep phrase) --> noun phrase.
here both "which" and "that" refer to the noun - "the part".


"Which" do not always refer to the noun before the comma - this is meaning and context dependent. here in the first sentence "which" referring to "earth" makes no sense. For more on this usage refer to OG SC #26.

The original SC :

Some scientists suggest the moon had been formed out of part of the Earth, which was dislodged perhaps by a meteor.
1 the moon had been formed out of part of the Earth, which was dislodged perhaps
2 that the moon was formed from part of the Earth that had perhaps been dislodged

A is wrong not due to wrong reference error for "which" - it has two major error

1. "Suggest that" is the correct idiom

2. The sequence of events are changed.

First ( the part of earth was dislodged)---------------> second ( the moon was formed), But A shows the reverse.

Hope this helps !!
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