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Usenet Posted 16 years ago
Usage

'the way which' or 'the way in which'

Hi! Would you please tell me which is right, a or b?

a) This is the way which she chose to live.
b) This is the way in which she chose to live.
I think a) derives from a2) and b) from b2). I wonder if these are both correct.
a2) She chose the way to live.
b2) She chose to live in this way.
Thanks a lot in advance.
LP
  

Top answer

[/nq] To my ear, "which" sounds wrong or at least awkward in this construction. Either using "that" or omitting the relative pronoun is normal: This is the way that she chose to live. This is the way she chose to live.

— Usenet

  • [/nq] To my ear, "which" sounds wrong or at least awkward in this construction.
  • Either using "that" or omitting the relative pronoun is normal: This is the way that she chose to live.
  • This is the way she chose to live.
  • " The noun phrase is used adverbially.
  • "Which" seems wrong in replacing it because of its other function as an interrogative pronoun.
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6 Answers
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[nq:1]a) This is the way which she chose to live.[/nq]
To my ear, "which" sounds wrong or at least awkward in this construction. Either using "that" or omitting the relative pronoun is normal:

This is the way that she chose to live.
This is the way she chose to live.
[nq:1]a2) She chose the way to live.[/nq]
No, it's "She chose to live this way." The noun phrase is used ad
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At a very early age, I'm convinced that I was taught that "which" was usually preferable to "that", and that "that" was rather slovenly. As a result, "which" is what I generally use. However, I've seen reference in this NG about there being definite rules for "which" and "that", and, if this is so, I have a nasty feeling that, for over sixty years, I may often have been getting things wrong.
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[nq:2]To my ear, "which" sounds wrong or at least awkward ... be "This is the way to live (which/that) she chose."[/nq]
[nq:1]At a very early age, I'm convinced that I was taught that "which" was usually preferable to "that", and that ... is so, I have a nasty feeling that, for over sixty years, I may often have been getting things wrong.[/nq]
Some claim that "that" always indicates a rest
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[nq:1]Some claim that "that" always indicates a restrictive clause and "which" always indicates an unrestrictive clause. But "which" is often used in restrictive clauses. I don't recall ever having seen "that" used in an unrestrictive clause.[/nq]
Any chance of a few examples?

Ian
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[nq:1]At a very early age, I'm convinced that I was taught that "which" was usually preferable to "that", and that ... what I generally use. However, I've seen reference in this NG about there being definite rules for "which" and "that"[/nq]
The one totally definite rule is that "that" is used only in restrictive clauses. "Which" is always defensible (even in the use at hand that I say "sounds
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[nq:2]Some claim that "that" always indicates a restrictive clause and ... recall ever having seen "that" used in an unrestrictive clause.[/nq]
[nq:1]Any chance of a few examples?[/nq]
Restrictive: "I opened the book that I had found under the desk."

Unrestrictive: "I opened my book, which I had found under the desk."

Odysseus
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