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DorisPao Posted 11 years ago
Grammar
This vs. that
Hi everyone!
Can someone please explain something to me? I get a bit confused about "this" vs. "that". I know all the rules and I know that they define proximity ("this"=here, "that"=there), among other things, but it seems there are many areas where the use of this/that is subjective and up to the speaker.
E.g.
Marry you? I am not ready for this kind of commitment.
Marry you? I am not ready for that kind of commitment.
Lying to the employees? This kind of attitude is unacceptable.
Lying to the employees? That kind of attitude is unacceptable.
Mr. Chairman, I agree with this statement.
Mr. Chairman, I agree with that statement.
It seems to me that it's often up to the speaker to determine how closely he/she feels to the subjects (e.g. "commitment", "attitude", "statement", etc.) and use "this" or "that" based on that, meaning it can be very subjective and there are times when both can be used.
Am I right? And if not, can someone please elaborate?
Thank you for your guidance.
Doris
Can someone please explain something to me? I get a bit confused about "this" vs. "that". I know all the rules and I know that they define proximity ("this"=here, "that"=there), among other things, but it seems there are many areas where the use of this/that is subjective and up to the speaker.
E.g.
Marry you? I am not ready for this kind of commitment.
Marry you? I am not ready for that kind of commitment.
Lying to the employees? This kind of attitude is unacceptable.
Lying to the employees? That kind of attitude is unacceptable.
Mr. Chairman, I agree with this statement.
Mr. Chairman, I agree with that statement.
It seems to me that it's often up to the speaker to determine how closely he/she feels to the subjects (e.g. "commitment", "attitude", "statement", etc.) and use "this" or "that" based on that, meaning it can be very subjective and there are times when both can be used.
Am I right? And if not, can someone please elaborate?
Thank you for your guidance.
Doris
Top answer
This and that are almost interchangeable in many cases. Sometimes, “this” refers to the closest item and “that” to an item farther away. This tile (meaning the tile I’m holding) looks darker than that tile.
- This and that are almost interchangeable in many cases.
- Sometimes, “this” refers to the closest item and “that” to an item farther away.
- This tile (meaning the tile I’m holding) looks darker than that tile.
- Sometimes, “this” refers to the currently discussed item and “that” refers to the prior one.
- All three of your examples work (without further context) with both.
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4 Answers
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This and that are almost interchangeable in many cases. Sometimes, “this” refers to the closest item and “that” to an item farther away. This tile (meaning the tile I’m holding) looks darker than that tile. Sometimes, “this” refers to the currently discussed item and “that” refers to the prior one. All three of your examples work (without further context) with both.
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That's what I had thought. Thank you very much for your guidance, Wilpeter.
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Marry you? I am not ready for this kind of commitment.
Marry you? I am not ready for that kind of commitment.
Lying to the employees? This kind of attitude is unacceptable.
Lying to the employees? That kind of attitude is unacceptable.
Mr. Chairman, I agree with this statement.
Mr. Chairman, I agree with
Marry you? I am not ready for that kind of commitment.
Lying to the employees? This kind of attitude is unacceptable.
Lying to the employees? That kind of attitude is unacceptable.
Mr. Chairman, I agree with this statement.
Mr. Chairman, I agree with
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