Dear teachers,
Would you please tell me if we can replace 'in that month that' with 'in that month when' in the sentence below?
"Sextilis was renamed in Augustus's honor because it was in that month that many of his greatest achievements occured"
********** NOT A TEACHER **********
Hello, Heidi.
(1) I have been following your thread with great interest because I want to know the answer, too.
(2) May I contribute my two cents' worth.
(3) I agree with Teacher Mr. Ka that if you wish to write "correct" cleft sentences, you should use
that. (You may also use
who or
whom.)
(4) I agree with Poster Shroob that native speakers probably (I have no proof) use
when (or
where) without any worries.
(a) I do not think that native speakers use cleft sentences too often. (Of course, I do not know that for sure.)
(b) When they do use that construction, I suspect (again no proof) that some use
when or where because maybe it sounds "better" to them.
(5) In checking the Web for information, I discovered some interesting things:
(a) The experts -- those who write grammar books -- do not agree among themselves!!!
(b) Some people are really confused because the wonderful BBC (the British Broadcasting Corporation) tells English learners that the following is correct English:
It was last Saturday when my brother bought his new car. Many learners are upset because their teachers and books say to use
that, but the most respected and authoritative BBC says that
when is OK.
(c) I found something that really educated me, and I want to share it with you.
It was last night
that I realized that I didn't know what to do.
That is a real cleft sentence. It was last night -- not this morning. That is the fact that you want to emphasize.
Was is a linking verb connecting
it and
last night.
It was last night
when I realized that I didn't know what to do. In this sentence,
was is a real verb that means something like
occurred. And
when I realized that I didn't know what to do is an adverb clause modifying the verb
was.
(d) Here are some other sentences that helped me to better understand what a real cleft sentence is.
It was in the park
that I met him last summer. Emphasizes
in the park, not
at the mall.
It was in the park
where I met him last summer. I suspect that many native speakers think this is the same as the previous sentence. But the
teacher explained it this way:
In this sentence,
It is not just a word to introduce the sentence. It -- for example -- refers to the wedding. So the sentence is: The wedding was (occurred) in the park where I met him last summer. And
where I met him last summer is a clause that refers to
the park.
Note: Instead of
where, you could write
in which. (The park in which I met him last summer. It answers the question: In which park did the wedding occur?)
*****
Summary:
(1) It is
only my opinion that you should keep
that in your sentence.
(2) If you use
when, I don't think most native speakers would notice or even care.
(3) It is perfect English to use
when, where, in which when a sentence is
not a real cleft sentence. If it is a cleft sentence, it is safer to stay with
that.
Thank you
Sextilis was renamed ... because it was in that month [
not in some other month] that ....
