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"it's imperative you post a picture of your pug" or "it's imperative THAT you post a picture of your pug"

What's the difference?

herisson
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Kapooky Handy
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    One has the word that in it and is therefore 5 characters and 1 syllable longer. – Jim Nov 29 '14 at 07:25
  • Does the inclusion of the word "that" emphasize anything? – Kapooky Handy Nov 29 '14 at 07:26
  • No it doesn't. They are identical in meaning. – Jim Nov 29 '14 at 07:30
  • That can be omitted (elided) without affecting the grammaticality or the meaning. It is now more common to drop as many instances of that as one can this way. – Kris Nov 29 '14 at 08:24
  • (Off topic) I think you mean the BrEng term mug as in "face". I'm not familiar with the term pug unless it refers to a particular breed of dog. – Mari-Lou A Nov 29 '14 at 08:56
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    @Mari-LouA maybe they desperately need a picture of their large coffee cup? ('mug' for face is also used in AmE, but only in dated crime dramas) – Mitch Nov 29 '14 at 12:58
  • @Mitch It's imperative?! We really, really need to see from which type of vessel you're drinking our tea/coffee product. :P – Mari-Lou A Nov 29 '14 at 13:03
  • Kapooky Handy, we think it's a typo, but because this is the Internet, and anything is possible (maybe you are writing for a website dedicated to pets), I cannot edit your post. – Mari-Lou A Nov 29 '14 at 13:12

3 Answers3

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This is not really a grammar question; it falls into an area I call "tight writing." No one can slam a grammatical error tag on either one of your examples; the question is what that adds to the clarity of the sentence. It's quite clear [that?] it contributes nothing.

Some say [that] a majority of the THATs used in writing today can be eliminated without error or lack of clarity. This is such a case.

Tightwriter
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    It really is a grammar question: the grammar says that is optional in this case. So the choice lies with the speaker; how do you want it to sound? It's not a matter of writing; writing is just technology, and one can ignore infrastructure in technology and get away with it for a long time. But eventually some situation will occur where that extra syllable would clarify something. Writing tight is possible, but everything that gets deleted contributes to ambiguity, and a writer usually doesn't want to depend on an unknown reader to do toomuch disambiguation. – John Lawler Nov 29 '14 at 16:56
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Yes, both are fine. And, as you pointed out, "that" adds emphasis for the listener or the reader. So, it really depends on if you want the clause to be emphasized or not. Hope that helps.

Patrick T. Randolph
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    I don't think that adds any extra emphasis. In fact if I were really in earnest and expressing that sentiment I'd be more likely to skip the that because it is unnecessary and takes longer to get to the point. – Jim Nov 29 '14 at 07:32
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Both are grammatically correct, and equivalent. The one with the "that" is, I believe, more pleasant to the ear. However, the passive "It's imperative" is stilted and superfluous; the sentence would be better recast as "You must post...", which obviates any question about "that". But if you insist on a roundabout construction, be specific: say "regulations require THAT you post..." or "the contest rules require you TO post..." or some such.

Brian Hitchcock
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