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When I read essays from Eliot, I find him using "that which" frequently, e.g.

  1. the combination which is the murder of Agamemnon is probably as complex as that which is the voyage of Ulysses.
  2. A very small part of acting is that which takes place on the stage!
  3. They belong to a different race. Their crudity is that which was of the Roman, as compared with the Greek, in real life.

I can kind of guess its usage, but I want to know more about this grammar structure. Searching on Google mostly gave me the simple difference between "that" and "which", and some examples using "that which":

  1. that which we call a rose (from "Romeo and Juliet")
  2. that which we persist in doing

It is a pity that Google search does not direct me to any useful page about "that which". Can someone explicate its grammar for me?

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    Oh look: it’s more restrictive which. Perhaps the which-hunters will come ’round and change it to that that. :(
    – tchrist ♦
    May 2, 2012 at 4:20
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    @tchrist, proud to be a which-hunter. For others wanting in on his inside joke. Per Bernstein's "The Careful Writer": "Let it be noted that there are two exceptions to the use of that to introduce a defining clause. One is a situation in which the demonstrative that and the relative that come together, as in this sentence: 'The latent opposition to rearming Germany is as strong as that that has found public expression.' Idiom dictates making it that which. "
    – JLG
    May 2, 2012 at 13:04
  • @tchrist, ..continuing..."The second exception is a situation in which the relative follows a preposition: for example, of which, not of that." (page 446).
    – JLG
    May 2, 2012 at 13:04

3 Answers 3

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The combination of that which in the example sentences is fine. The that is a pronoun referring back to a noun phrase and the which is the relative pronoun used for non-animate antecedents. If we expand the shortest of the OP's example sentences to replace the pronoun that with its noun referent, we get:

  • A very small part of acting is acting which takes place on the stage!

We can see a similar (personal) pronoun / relative pronoun combination in:

  • He who hesitates is lost.
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"That which" = What

For example;

We feel great admiration and respect for those who gave their lives for this country. Our people will long remember that which they did/ what they did.

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  • Succinct and clear!
    – JohnnyQ
    Aug 25, 2021 at 23:20
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I agree. In this instance, "what" may be more suitable and "approachable". However, "what" does not, in all instances AND grammatically, take the place of "that which". For example: "That which disturbs me, does not necessarily disturb others." VS: "What disturbs me, does not necessarily disturb others". There IS a difference, albeit subtle. IMHO, the first example is much more eloquent than the second, while still comprehensible.

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  • Hello, Jill. Welcome to the crucible that is ELU. In your two examples, I'd omit the commas; the comma is only licensed (and then contentiously) between subject and verb for very heavy subjects. // And I'd say the only difference between your examples is one of register.
    – Edwin Ashworth
    May 14, 2021 at 16:04

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