Editing That (section)

== Modern usage ==
The word ''that'' serves several grammatical purposes. Owing to its wide versatility in usage, the writer [[Joseph Addison]] named it "that jacksprat" in 1771, and gave this example of a grammatically correct sentence: "That that I say is this: that that that that gentleman has advanced, is not that, that he should have proved."{{sfn|Cheshire|1995|p=370}} ''That'' can be used as a demonstrative [[pronoun]], 
demonstrative [[adjective]], 
[[conjunction (grammar)|conjunction]], 
[[English relative words|relative word]],
and an [[intensifier]].{{sfn|Cheshire|1995|p=370}}

*''That'' as a [[demonstrative]] pronoun refers to a specific object being discussed, such as in "that is a cat";{{sfn|Weinstein|1974|p=180}} the word is a [[distal demonstrative]] pronoun, as opposed to proximal, because there is distance between the speaker and the object being discussed (as opposed to words such as ''this'', where there is a relative sense of closeness).{{sfn|Pavesi|2013|p=105}} 
*When used as a demonstrative adjective, ''that'' describes which specific object is being discussed; for example, in the phrase "that spotted dog is Fido", ''that'' specifies which particular dog is Fido among all spotted dogs.{{sfn|Reimer|1991|pp=194–195, 201}} 
*In its usage as a conjunction, it connects [[Clause|clauses]] together, such as in "I know that Peter is right".{{sfn|Mańczak|1973|p=58}} In sentences with several clauses, ''that'' is also used as a discriminator to differentiate between subjects of a clause.{{sfn|Otsu|2002b|p=226}} 
*As a relative pronoun, ''that'' introduces [[Restrictive clause|restrictive clauses]], such as in "the different factors that are fundamental and specific to particular features"; in a study of medical science journals in Britain leading up to 2004, it was found that ''that'' had been largely replaced by the word ''which'' when used in this context,{{sfn|Sonoda|2004|p=1}} while writing that is increasingly formal—ranging from verse to fiction to nonfiction—finds ''that'' usage decreasing as ''wh-'' words ([[Interrogative word|interrogatives]]) relatively increase.{{sfn|Van den Eynden Morpeth|1999|p=121}} 
*''That'' is used as a relative adverb, such as in "it doesn't cost that much".{{sfn|Cheshire|1995|p=378}} When used in this way, ''that'' requires inferences be drawn by the listener to determine the meaning of the speaker.{{sfn|Cheshire|1995|p=378}} 
*The word also intensifies elements of a sentence, similar in function to the word ''so'', such as when one says "I was that ill ... I couldn't even stand up."{{sfn|Cheshire|1995|p=378}} But just as in its use as a relative adverb, ''that'' as an intensifier is best understood when the addressee infers meaning from its usage.{{sfn|Cheshire|1995|p=378}} In the example given, ''that'' intensifies and refers to a possible view already held by the addressee (whether the speaker was not seriously ill), even though the speaker does not explicitly confirm or intensify this previously-held belief.{{sfn|Cheshire|1995|p=378}}