That Subject Clauses: Using a clause as the subject of a sentence

That — Subject Clauses

Using a clause as the subject of a sentence

word order in that-clause

That–clause as Subject

THAT	NOUN
That introduces an entire clause as the subject of a sentence, which places emphasis on the information in the clause.	In most cases, a that clause can be restated in simpler terms using nouns, gerunds and/or modifiers.
He said, "We need more people in math and science!" That we need more people in math and science is clear to all. (be + adjective)	The country's need for more people in math and science is clear to all. (possessive noun)
He added, "We are not prepared for the future." That we are not prepared for the future concerns us. (verb)	Preparing for the future concerns us. (gerund)
"There are too few scientists to replace those who are retiring." That there are too few new scientists is well-known. (passive)	The insufficient number of new scientists is well-known. (possessive double nouns)

THAT

NOUN

That introduces an entire clause as the subject of a sentence, which places emphasis on the information in the clause.

In most cases, a that clause can be restated in simpler terms using nouns, gerunds and/or modifiers.

He said, "We need more people in math and science!"

That we need more people in math and science is clear to all. (be + adjective)

The country's need for more people in math and science is clear to all.
(possessive noun)

He added, "We are not prepared for the future."

That we are not prepared for the future concerns us. (verb)

Preparing for the future concerns us.
(gerund)

"There are too few scientists to replace those who are retiring."

That there are too few new scientists is well-known. (passive)

The insufficient number of new scientists is well-known.
(possessive double nouns)

retire (v.) – end working after 65

That Clauses Verbs + Complements

That we are losing high-level scientists .

That young people are not choosing careers in science us.

is /was + Adjective

apparent	clear	critical	disconcerting	disgusting	distressing
due [to]	evident	essential	important	indisputable	inevitable
obvious	remarkable	significant	striking	suggestive	true
undeniable	vital	worrying

Be + Noun

an accident	a reason	a consequence	a factor / a fact	a miracle	a result [of]
a problem	no reason [for]	the fault [of]	a source [of]	a measure [of]	a pity

Verb (a few transitive and intransitive ones)

amazes	amuses	angers	astonishs	bothers	deters
disgusts	disturbs	enriches	helps	illustrates	impresses
influences	infuriates	makes us [verb]	matters	offends	reflects
reveals	shows	stuns	surprises	upsets
appeals [to]	indicates X [to]	means X [to]	occurs	suggests X [to]

Be + Participle

acknowledged	appreciated	believed	challenged	doubted	disputed
found true	recognized	remembered	understood	verified	well-known

That Clause Agreement

SINGULAR	PLURAL
That subject clauses use singular agreement is or was.	A compound (double) that subject clause uses are or were.
[That our youth needs education] is / was his message. (youth is noncount)	[That our youth needs education] and [that teachers need training] are/ were his messages.

SINGULAR

PLURAL

That subject clauses use singular agreement is or was.

A compound (double) that subject clause uses are or were.

[That our youth needs education] is / was his message. (youth is noncount)

[That our youth needs education] and [that teachers need training] are/ were his messages.

Common Mistakes

ERROR	FIX
That he is losing his hair is too bad. (not used)	That he is losing his hair is frustrating / upsetting. It is too bad that he is losing his hair.
That he building a spacecraft is remarkable. (incomplete verb in the clause)	That he is building a spacecraft is remarkable.

ERROR

FIX

That he is losing his hair is too bad. (not used)

That he is losing his hair is frustrating / upsetting.
It is too bad that he is losing his hair.

That he building a spacecraft is remarkable. (incomplete verb in the clause)

That he is building a spacecraft is remarkable.

Resources

Huddleston, Rodney and Geoffrey K. Pullum. The Cambridge Grammar of the English Language. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2002. Print. (957)

Swan, Michael. "Practical English Usage. 3rd ed. 2009: Oxford University Press. Print. (5.3.2)

Practice 1

Losing Hair

Select the word from each menu that best completes the sentence.
Compare your response to the answer by clicking the "check" button to the right.

#	YOUR RESPONSE	CHECK YOUR ANSWER
1.	His hair loss is upsetting. is upsetting.
2.	He feels bad about it, which is normal. is normal.
3.	He doesn't need hair to be handsome. is untrue.
4.	Famous athletes shave their heads, so it is cool. makes it cool.
5.	Losing hair as we age is common knowledge. is well-known.

Practice 2

Hair Extensions

Rewrite each sentence to a sentence beginning with "That"
Compare your response to the answer by clicking the "check" button to the right.

#	YOUR RESPONSE	CHECK YOUR ANSWER
6.	REWRITE: Some women wear hair extensions. It's not surprising. EDIT: That
7.	REWRITE: Long hair is fashionable. It is the reason. EDIT That
8.	REWRITE: Hair extensions damage hair. It is unfortunate. That
9.	REWRITE: The price of hair extensions is rising. This doesn't surprise me. That
10.	REWRITE: Fashion constantly changes. This is certain. That

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