Which of the following uses the pronoun "that/who" correctly?

Question

BlackTom AI · Accepted Answer

The question asks which option uses the pronoun 'that' or 'who' correctly when referring to a person.
Option 1: The speech pathologist worked with a stroke patient who she knew was suffering from aphasia. This uses 'who' to refer to the patient, a person, which is appropriate. In standard English, 'who' is the preferred relative pronoun for people, especially in clauses that function as the subject of a verb (in this case, 'was suffering'). The embedded idea 'she knew' remains correctly connected to the relative clause.
Option 2: The speech pathologist worked with a stroke patient that she knew was suffering from aphasia. Here, 'that' is used to refer to a person. While 'that' can be used for things and sometimes for people in restrictive clauses, the traditional rule in formal grammar reserves 'who' (or sometimes 'whom' in object position) for people. Using 'that' with a person is generally considered less appropriate or more informal, and this makes the sentence sound off to careful readers.
A few additional clarifications:
- If the sentence were written as 'The speech pathologist worked with a stroke patient who she knew was suffering from aphasia,' the structure is cleaner and adheres to the conventional choice of 'who' for people in a relative clause.
- 'That' is perfectly fine when the antecedent is a non-human noun (e.g., 'the book that she read'), but for a human antecedent, 'who' is the safer and more widely accepted option.
- The placement of 'she knew' inside the relative clause also matters for readability; keeping the clause clear helps prevent misreading of who is performing the action.
In summary, Option 1 correctly uses the pronoun 'who' for a person, whereas Option 2 misuses 'that' in reference to a person, making it the incorrect choice.

Which of the following uses the pronoun "that/who" correctly?

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