Elm3 chart07 08

1. Section A

2. We frequently use this or that to “point to” or
focus attention on a thing, an action, or an idea
mentioned earlier.
A: Why is Matt angry all the time?
B: I don’t know. He didn’t use to be like that.
I can’t believe my brother left without me.
How could he do this to me?

3. Sometimes we can use either this or that.
However, we often use this to refer to things
that are “closer” to us in time, in location, or in
how we feel about them.
There was a decline in the unemployment rate last week. This suggests
that the job market is still in good shape.

4. We often use that to refer to things that
are “farther away” from us.
Mathematics is typically taught in a traditional way. Too often,
that means students learn by memorizing facts.

5. This or that can sometimes refer back to an
entire sentence or paragraph, especially in
academic writing.
Sleep is necessary for every animal that has ever been
studied. This includes whales, octopuses--even fruit flies.

6. Section B

7. In conversation, that is more
common than this.
A: I think our garden got washed out by the rain.
B: Oh, no, that’s terrible!
In academic writing, this is more
common than that.
In recent years, banks have begun charging
higher interest rates. This suggests that they
are becoming more careful about who they
are lending money to.

8. In academic writing, we often use this with
these verbs:
explains
implies
includes
indicates
involves
is
makes
means
requires
seems
shows
suggests

9. Section C

10. In academic writing, we can use this or that to
refer back to an idea that we have just
mentioned. (This brings attention to the previous
idea and indicates that the ideas are closely
related.) In later sentences, however, we often
use it to refer to the idea again (not this).
To understand a word, we first have to
retrieve its meaning from memory.
Most of the time, this happens quickly,
but sometimes it doesn’t.

11. In academic writing, we can use this or that to
refer back to an idea that we have just
mentioned. In later sentences, we often use it
to refer to the idea again.
If you have problems with a product, try
contacting the manufacturer. This will help you
get useful information, and it may solve your
problem.