LoginWho vs. That
Differences
What They Refer to
'Who' and 'that':
'Who' is used to talk about a person or people. 'That' is used to talk about things people, etc.
Who has the keys?
Who is your favorite singer?
This is the opportunity that I was looking for a lot.
He was the boy that won the game.
Who and That as Interrogative Pronouns
'Who' and 'that':
'Who' is used as an interrogative pronoun to ask questions but 'that' cannot be used as an interrogative pronoun. So we cannot put it at the beginning of a question.
Who is the tall girl? (Not "That is the tall girl?")
Who cooked dinner last night? (NOT That cooked dinner last night?)
Restrictive and Non-restrictive Clauses
Restrictive clauses | Non-restrictive clauses | |
|---|---|---|
Who | ✓ | ✓ |
That | ✓ | × |
Who and That in Indirect Speech
'Who' and 'that':
Remember we can use 'who' in indirect speech, but 'that' is not used in indirect speech to get information about a person or people. Keep in mind that this does not mean that we __cannot_ use 'that in an indirect speech at all. We can use 'that' when we are not writing an indirect speech in question form.
I wanted to know, who invented the telephone. (Not "I wanted to know, that invented the telephone.")
He confirmed, the man was the one that / who killed the innocent girl.
Similarities
'Who' and 'That' as Relative Pronouns
'Who' and 'that':
both are used as relative pronouns to connect two clauses. As you know who refers to 'people' and that refers to both 'people' and 'things'.
The book that I bought for Marco turned out a total shame.
The doctor who cured me has unfortunately passed away.
Ansel, who is a dentist, is going to the big party of ours.
Bella that is the bride is too beautiful.
When Referring to a Group
When the speaker is talking about a group of people it is their choice to think of them as individuals or a whole group. So in this case using 'who' and 'that' would be both correct.
The staff that were laid off, found jobs at the rival company. → all the people
The staff who was laid off, found a job at the rival company. → individual
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