153. Conjunction Uses of “that”

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“That” is actually five different words spelt the same, of which one is a multi-use conjunction

THE VARIETY OF USES OF “that”

The word that is very much “multi-use” – variable in its grammar as well as its meaning (see 3. Multi-Use Words) and can easily cause confusions as a result (see 68. How Computers Get Grammar Wrong 1). Its main uses may be illustrated as follows:

(a) Caesar took control of Rome. That led to his assassination.

(b) Caesar marched on Rome. That step changed history.

(c) Any changes that appear should be noted.

(d) Learning languages is not that difficult.

(e) Doctors BELIEVE that exercise IS vital.

In (a), that is an ordinary pronoun like it or themselves: it represents either a nearby noun or one understandable from the context of the sentence (see 28. Pronoun Errors). In some sentences it means “the one” (see 63. Constraints on Using “the one[s]”). It can be put into the plural form those. Grammar books call it a “demonstrative” pronoun, reflecting its attention-drawing meaning.

In (b), that is like an adjective: adding to the meaning of a directly-following noun (step). It again has the plural form those. Grammarians give it the technical name “determiner” (see 110. Nouns without “the” or “a”), further sub-classifying it as “demonstrative”. In this blog it is considered, along with use (a) above, in 234. Adjective and Pronoun Uses of “that”.

In (c), that is again a pronoun, but this time “relative”, in other words replaceable by which. It is pronounced differently from the other two uses: with the soft vowel /Ə/ instead of the normal “a” one /æ/. More can be read about it within this blog in 34. Relative Pronouns and Commas and 200. Special Uses of Relative Pronouns.

In (d), that is an informal adverb meaning “as much as that”. In Standard English, it usually needs to follow not, hardly, rarely or scarcely.

In (e), finally, that (again with /Ə/) is a conjunction. It resembles the relative pronoun use in its need for a following verb (is above) – a feature that can lead to double meanings (see 182. Structures with a Double Meaning 2, #2). It is distinguishable by its inability to be replaced by which. This is the use I wish to examine more closely here, since it takes a number of different forms and raises some interesting questions.

A useful term for discussing the conjunction uses of that is “that clause”. This means that plus its following verb plus all of the other words associated with that verb, such as its subject and adverbials. The underlined words in (e) are a that clause.

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“that” CLAUSES THAT ACT LIKE NOUNS

Noun-like that clauses occupy the main noun positions in sentences (object, subject, complement, partner of a preposition). Sentence (e) above is of this kind. The conjunction nature of that is what overcomes the normal impossibility of a verb with a subject, like is in (e), to be in these positions (see 70. Gerunds).

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1. Object “that” Clauses

The that clause in (e) is of this more specific kind, being the object of the verb believe. A characteristic of most object that clauses is that that can be left unsaid but still “understood”. When present, it normally has no comma before or after it (see 50. Right and Wrong Comma Places).

Not all object clauses can have that. Those that are indirect questions start with a question word like where, how or what (see 57. Indirect Questions in Formal Writing). Others just make the object verb either an infinitive (with to) or a gerund (with -ing – see 70. Gerunds). To illustrate this variation, consider the following:

(f) A spell check will ensure (that) most errors ARE FOUND.

That is needed here because ensure requires it before any object containing a verb (see 296. Tricky Word Contrasts 12, #1). However, if help replaced ensure, the object would be …most errors to be found (see 208. Verbs with an Object + Infinitive, #7), while facilitate would require …most errors being found (see 250. Synonym Pairs with Contrasting Grammar 1, #5).

The problem that all this creates for learners of English, of course, is to know which verbs need which following pattern. The main clue – a rather unreliable one – is perhaps the kind of meaning expressed by the verb. A major kind expressed by that verbs is the idea of speech or thought without asking or commanding, as in SAY or BELIEVE. However, some verbs of this type require a different kind of object or even no object at all (see 279. Grammatical Differences between Citation Verbs). Thus, caution is always necessary.

Other types of verb meaning that allow an object that clause include causation (sometimes) with verbs like ENSURE, ENTAIL and MEAN (see 65. Verbs that Mean “Must” or “Can”), and arrangement with ARRANGE, FIX and SEE TO. However, after these latter that cannot be left invisible and must follow it (arrange it that…: see 190. Special Uses of “it“, #4). The same is true of like/dislike verbs (APPRECIATE, ENJOY, [DIS]LIKE, LOVE, ABHOR, DETEST, HATE, LOATH). These can additionally replace it that with it if, it when or the fact that.

Some verbs – notably CONTRADICT, HIGHLIGHT and INCLUDE – only allow a following subject + verb with the fact that.

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2. Subject “that” Clauses

That clauses occasionally occupy the subject position:

(g) That air pollution kills is obvious.

However, such uses sound very formal. It is commoner to begin the fact that, or to start with it:

(h) It is obvious that air pollution kills.

This kind of that clause is a subject located after its verb (is) and anticipated by a “dummy” pronoun it (see 103. Representing a Later Statement with “It”). Sometimes, instead of it, such sentences have to start with there (+ is + NOUN) (see 161. Special Uses of “There” Sentences, #4).

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3. Complement “that” Clauses

Complements work with special verbs to communicate a name, role, identity or description of a preceding noun (see 220. Features of Complements). That complements typically follow BE or similar to say something about a speech or thought noun before it:

(i) THE BELIEF is that success will come.

The purpose of this use is to say in more detail what the earlier noun (belief above) is referring to (see 117. Restating Generalizations More Precisely). An idiomatic alternative to BE after speech nouns is GO (see 176. Ways of Using GO, #1).

Other nouns like belief include argument, assumption, attitude, claim, concern, conclusion, expectation, feeling, hope, hypothesis, idea, implication, impression, indication, meaning, message, news, notion, plan, point, report, suggestion, theory, thinking, view and word. For more, see 287. Speech and Thought Nouns, #1.

Some nouns that do not represent speech or thought can also have a that complement:

(j) The EVIDENCE is that nobody takes responsibility.

Similar nouns include (dis)advantage (+ synonyms – see 277. Advantages & Disadvantages, #4), arrangement, characteristic, clue, consequence (+ synonyms – see 32. Expressing Consequences), curiosity, custom, danger, difference, evidence, future, likelihood, outlook, possibility, principle, probability, proof, prospect, reason, risk and situation.

Many other subject nouns can have a complement containing a verb, but only with a joining device other than that – either the to form of the verb (see 119. BE before a “to” Verb) or -ing.

A feature of many non-reporting sentences like (j) is that, unlike (i), they allow the fact that as well as that. I feel the meanings differ slightly: the fact that implies the reader’s previous knowledge of the fact (making the sentence only about its equivalence to the subject noun), while that has no such implication. For more about how information familiarity affects language choices, see 156. Mentioning What the Reader Knows Already.

Some of the other nouns like problem allow the same choice. They are underlined above. Exceptions include nouns referring to the future, probably because the future is not a fact.

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4. “that” Clauses after Prepositions

A that clause can also follow certain prepositions, normally alongside the fact:

(k) Smoking is made attractive BY the fact that it looks “cool”.

(l) The spread of cold viruses DEPENDS ON the fact that people breathe them out.

An exception to this need for the fact is after in clarifying a similarity or difference (are similar in that …: see 82. Common Errors in Making Comparisons, #7). After except one can say either …that or …for the fact that (see 215. Naming Exceptions).

Verbs after a preposition can also be in the -ing (gerund) form, but the meaning can differ. In (l), for example, the fact that indicates that viruses are inevitably breathed out (it is a fact), whereas -ing suggests that it may sometimes not happen.

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“that” CLAUSES THAT ACT LIKE ADVERBS AND ADJECTIVES

That is often part of a longer phrase introducing an adverb clause:

(m) IN THE EVENT THAT the rains fail, stored water maintains irrigation.

This clause is adverb-like because it is not the subject, object or complement of the main verb maintains (see 174. Eight Things to Know about Conjunctions, #8). Phrases ending in that are quite numerous, other examples being assuming that, except that, given that, in order that, in that, so that and provided that (see 230. Multi-Word Conjunctions, #1).

A second adverb-like use of that clauses follows adjectives, e.g. happy that wages rose. Not all adjectives allow that, and even those that do sometimes have a to verb, preposition or -ing instead (see 203. Expanding an Adjective with Words after it).

That-allowing adjectives may express an emotion (e.g. angry, convinced, delighted, determined, disappointed, happy, hopeful, jealous, keen, sad), a mind state (e.g. aware, certain [= convinced], clear, convinced, doubtful, sceptical, sure), or a way of speaking (e.g. convincing, correct, definite, emphatic, insistent, right). That clauses after these, especially the latter two kinds, often function as indirect speech (see 300. Adjective Indicators of Indirect Speech). If they name a desired future, their verb can have the “subjunctive” form (see 269. Exotic Grammar Structures 7, #7). 

Other adjectives, e.g. certain (= unarguable), curious, definite (= proven), interesting, strange, sometimes go between it is… and a that clause. However, these clauses are noun-like rather than adverb-like, repeating it rather than expanding the adjective (see 103. Representing a Later Statement with “It”). Certain and definite are unusual in allowing both that uses, albeit with different meanings (see 226. Words with Complicated Grammar 2, #2).

The final use of that clauses is adjective-like, describing a noun just before:

(n) DENIAL that God exists is a belief like its opposite.

Technically, such clauses are still noun ones (forming an “apposition” structure with the noun before: see 253. Descriptive Wording after Nouns 2, #3), but their similarity to adjectives is clear. They tend to accompany the same nouns that complement that clauses follow, as in (i) and (j) above. One other is no doubt after there is (see 157. Tricky Word Contrasts 5, #1).

That clauses after a noun can often become a verbless preposition phrase, e.g. the denial of God‘s existence. After nouns like advice, desire and wish, they can become a to verb (see 239. Noun Phrases Made with a “to” Verb).

152. Agreeing & Disagreeing in Formal Contexts

Agreement and disagreement can be shown in numerous ways in formal contexts

THE USE OF FORMAL (DIS)AGREEMENT LANGUAGE

Agreement and disagreement are common in formal academic and professional communication. This is because they are associated with argumentation, crucial in the development of hypotheses, theories, policies and strategies. An argument is essentially an opinion combined with one or more supporting statements (see 167. Ways of Arguing 1), and agreeing and disagreeing are one form of opinion (see 107. The Language of Opinions).

Agreeing and disagreeing in formal contexts can be very different from the everyday spoken type, which is of course also common. Special care must be taken with disagreeing in order not to sound impolite. This post presents a variety of common ways in which agreement and disagreement can be expressed in formal speech and writing.

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WAYS OF AGREEING

Common means by which a writer can show agreement with an opinion are verbs, adjectives, adverbs and as clauses.

1. Verbs

The most direct way to express agreement is with I agree. If the originator of the opinion is not already obvious, they can be mentioned after with (see 44. Troublesome Prepositional Verbs). The opinion itself can be shown, if necessary, with either about + noun or that + verb:

(a) I agree (with Smith) about film censorship (or …that film censorship is [un]justified).

A synonym of AGREE is CONCUR. Slightly different are ACCEPT and SUPPORT. Both can directly precede X’s argument, point, idea, etc. with or without a following that…:

(b) I accept the last speaker’s point (that…).

In addition, ACCEPT allows a directly-following that…, while SUPPORT can just accompany someone’s name. Note that AGREE corresponds to ACCEPT only when meaning “agree” – not when meaning “consent” (see 317. Tricky Word Contrasts 13, #2).

All the above verbs can be strengthened with adverbs, especially absolutely, completely, totally, wholly or wholeheartedly placed before or after them, or quite or utterly before. Quite alone, with its verb just implied, is an occasional indicator of spoken agreement (see 256. Unusual Meanings of Familiar Words, #3). The verbs can be weakened with a following up to a point or to a degree (see 194. Adverbs that Say How Much).

One other verb option is like (NAME), I think… .

In writing, of course, a problem with such verb uses is that they necessitate I, which may be considered too informal (see 46. How to Avoid “I”, “We” and “You”). Written equivalents of I agree are often adjectives or adverbs, but there are some verb ones.

Perhaps the closest verb alternative to I agree is cannot be denied, either between it…that, or just with the supported idea as its subject. Another possibility is a kind of academic “citation” verb that implies agreement:

(c) Smith (2010) proves that film censorship is (un)justified.

The verb subject here (Smith) is the person being agreed with. The verb proves implies the writer’s agreement with Smith because the idea of proof makes disagreement difficult. However, PROVE is unlikely in academic discussions of disputed points because the kind of categorical truth assertion that it makes would be frowned on (see 95. Making Statements More Uncertain 1). Slightly weaker are DEMONSTRATE, ESTABLISH, MAKE IT CLEAR, POINT OUT and SHOW. Weaker still are INDICATE, NOTE and OBSERVE. INDICATE is especially popular with academic writers.

Nouns derived from the above verbs, such as indication and observation, can have a similar effect (see 287. Speech and Thought Nouns).

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2. Adjectives and Adverbs

Agreement adjectives can be linked with two kinds of noun: those representing the opinion holder (e.g. Marx, adherents) and those representing the opinion (e.g. suggestion, belief). They may go directly before this noun or after with a separating link verb (the normal positions of adjectives – see 109. Placing an Adjective after its Noun). The first example below expresses agreement with an opinion-holder (note the use of in -ing); the others focus on the opinion:

(d) Reformists are convincing in supporting social benefits.

(e) Arguments supporting social benefits are credible.

(f) A persuasive case for social benefits is made by Davis (2013).

The three adjectives here can describe either the opinion holder or the opinion. Others like them include accurate, compelling, effective, reasonable, difficult to contradict and easy to agree with/believe. The latter two, being multi-word adjective phrases, are unlikely in the pre-noun position illustrated by (f).

Some other adjectives have a more limited use. Correct and right seem likely to describe a person. Adjectives that typically describe an opinion include conclusive, encouraging, impressive, incontrovertible, irrefutable, powerful, strong, true and undeniable.

One other use of agreement adjectives is after it is:

(g) It is true (to say) that social benefits can end poverty.

True seems particularly common in sentences like this. It describes the pronoun it, but since it corresponds to the words after that (see 103. Representing a Later Statement with “It”), these words – which state the opinion being agreed with – are what true really describes.

Alternatives to true include accurate to say, convincing to say, correct to say, credible (to say), easy to agree, hard to disagree, obvious, definitely the case and undeniable. The last two here must echo a previous statement to show agreement; otherwise they just emphasise their user’s truth belief, or even express disagreement (see 224. Asserting the Truth of what you Say).

Adverbial agreement indicators are mostly just the adjectives listed above with -ly added. They usually accompany a report verb:

(h) Jones (2010) writes convincingly of the benefits of globalisation.

Two other adverbs, however, go inside the statement being agreed with:

(i) Globalisation indeed / certainly brings benefits.

Certainly and indeed used like this are formal equivalents of yes (see 297. Types of Response to a Question, #7). Often their accompanying verb will be emphatic with DO (does indeed bring…). Their statement must echo a previous one – otherwise they may express disagreement.

Like agreement verbs, adjectives and adverbs can often be strengthened or weakened with “degree” adverbs such as absolutely and up to a point.

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3. “As” Clauses

Many, but not all, citation verbs can be linked to reported information by means of as before them instead of that after, e.g. as X says, … (see 279. Grammatical Differences between Citation Verbs). As often seems to suggest agreement (see 183. Statements between Commas, #3).

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WAYS OF DISAGREEING

Disagreeing with an opinion – or even a purported fact – requires much more than just questioning it (see 168. Ways of Arguing 2). However, it is this latter that is the focus here. Most of the options are equivalents of the agreement-showing ones above.

4. Verbs

DISAGREE, REJECT and not + AGREE etc. can sound blunt. I recommend cannot + AGREE etc. because it suggests an effort has been made to agree. Also acceptable is Unlike X, I think… . For more on REJECT, see 276. Tricky Word Contrasts 11, #1.

As with agreement, certain reporting verbs can signal disagreement. A common one is CLAIM: in sentence (c), claims instead of proves would suggest the reporting writer’s disagreement with film censorship. Similar verbs include ALLEGE and ASSERT (GO AROUND SAYING is informal and impolite). The derived nouns allegation, assertion and claim are also useful.

Verbs that are simply opinion-indicating, such as ARGUE, MAINTAIN and THINK (see 107. The Language of Opinions) can also hint at disagreement. This is because their very highlighting that the reported point is not a fact suggests disagreement is possible. The hint is strengthened if they follow go(es) so far as to… (see 191. Exotic Grammar Structures 3, #4).

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5. Adjectives and Adverbs

Disagreement-showing adjectives seem unlikely to describe an opinion-holder, perhaps because it sounds impolite. Two politer possibilities are difficult to agree with and unconvincing.

On the other hand, adjectives describing a report noun are quite numerous. Examples are bogus, contentious, debatable, erroneous, extreme, fallacious, feeble, flimsy, hard to accept/believe, limited, ludicrous, misconceived, misguided, misleading, misplaced, mistaken, mythical, naive, overstated, poor, preposterous, questionable, scanty, shaky, simplistic, speculative, unconvincing, unsupportable and weak. For more, see 146. Some Important Prefix Types.

Most of these are common between it is…that (sometimes …to say that). Only poor, scanty and weak are exceptions. For examples of this usage and some other possibilities, see the Practice Exercise in 13. Hidden Negatives.

An additional adjective-like word is back-referring that before report nouns like idea, opinion or view: its very preference to this suggests disagreement (see 234. Adjective and Pronoun Uses of “that”). One adjective to avoid is unbelievable (see 114. Tricky Word Contrasts 3, #7).

Adverbs that imply disagreement are often made by adding -ly to an adjective (adjectives not allowing this are underlined in the list above). They typically accompany a report verb (e.g. …argues unconvincingly).

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6. “According to”

As a preposition, according to must precede the name or category of whoever is being disagreed with (see 107. The Language of Opinions). The combination typically forms a parenthesis between two commas or a comma and full stop. The suggestion of disagreement is typical rather than guaranteed, so is best backed up by saying why the accompanying assertion is problematic.

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7. “…may… but…”

This more complicated way of showing disagreement is analysed in depth elsewhere within these pages in 51. Making Concessions with “May”. An example is:

(j) Coal MAY be a cheap fuel, BUT it harms the environment.

Mentioned here are two facts about using coal for energy, one good and one bad. Putting may with the first suggests its lesser importance for the writer, while but with the second emphasises greater importance. The implication is that the writer disagrees with people who want to use coal for energy.

The same meanings can be expressed with numerous synonyms of may and but. However, some adverb equivalents of may, such as certainly and indeed, need to be treated with caution in reading because they are also usable without a following but to suggest ordinary agreement (see above). Similar to may…but… are all very well (see 159. Exotic Grammar Structures 2, #2) and, in spoken contexts, you have a point, but… .

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PRACTICE EXERCISE (Agreement and Disagreement)

Interested readers are invited to classify each statement below as either agreeing, disagreeing or neutral.

1. Mathieu (2010) points out that vegetarian diets deprive the human body of essential nutrients.

2. All roads are said to lead to Rome.

3. The popular image of a terrorist used to be that of a scruffy bomb-thrower.

4. Some artificial intelligence specialists allege that every function of the human brain will eventually be replicated by machines.

5. The important point has often been made that large automobiles do not always cause more harm to the environment than smaller ones.

6. It is encouraging to hear that drug laws should be relaxed.

7. According to Sim (2015), political situations may provide a greater incentive to save money than interest rates.

8. A train is sometimes defined simplistically as a collection of wagons pulled along rails by a locomotive.

9. Nuclear accidents are certainly possible. Nevertheless, nuclear power stations are the most efficient means of generating electricity.

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ANSWERS: 1 = Agreeing (positive report verb points out);  2 = Neutral;  3 = Neutral;  4 = Disagreeing (negative report verb allege);  5 = agreeing (positive adjective important);  6 = Agreeing (positive adjective encouraging);  7 = Neutral;  8 = Disagreeing (negative adverb simplistically);  9 = Disagreeing (paraphrase of may … but … ).