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I saw the Youtube video where a girl was explaining the meanings of the word "actually" and at the end said:

(1s) So that was the four ways that you can use "actually" but I've got a couple of extra tips that I want to share with you to actually make sure that you're using "actually" correctly.

I thought why she hadn't said:

(1pl) So those were the four ways that you can use "actually" ...

As far as I understand, the question is about demonstrative clefts. I found some more examples on the internet:

elte.hu:

(2s) That was his father and grandfather who advised him to join the navy.

(3pl) Those are real Levi’s 501 jeans that Kim is wearing.

I'll rewrite them for comparing:

(2pl) Those were his father and grandfather who advised him to join the navy.

(3s) That is real Levi’s 501 jeans that Kim is wearing.

So when is it correct to use a singular form and when plural? Thanks!

Loviii
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  • She wasn't reading from a script, and made a small mistake. – aparente001 Jun 10 '22 at 06:47
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    Editing what other people say, not write, is the way to madness. Trust me. Actually, "that was" is not short for those were, but for "that segment was." And now I am at peace. – Yosef Baskin Jun 10 '22 at 13:22
  • Really why she didn't say it was that it wasn't important and added no information to make it plural; sentence beginnings that are completely predictable often get swallowed or mutated because no one cares. – John Lawler Jun 10 '22 at 15:21
  • @YosefBaskin I didn't quite understand what you said. But I have a wish to keep up the conversation: I think in this case we should consider the madness not as the flip side of the reality but as its part. And if so, in this part there is also a logic not without attractiveness. – Loviii Jun 10 '22 at 17:48
  • This site disdains chatting. I was saying that I don't spend much energy correcting speech. Writing has higher standards for editing, whereas people cannot edit what they just said, so listeners are more forgiving. – Yosef Baskin Jun 10 '22 at 20:34
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    Note that 'It's his father and grandfather' is totally acceptable; a default singular for statements fronted by dummy it (and, it seems, increasingly for quasi-referential 'that') obtains. – Edwin Ashworth May 28 '23 at 13:26

5 Answers5

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(1s) So that was the four ways that you can use "actually"

That = what I have just said/what you have just seen.

So those were the four ways that you can use "actually"

Those = those methods that you have just seen / I have just explained.

Greybeard
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'That was/is' can usually be followed by a plural-form noun phrase when the communication / event / group of people etc can be considered unary, for those allowing logical agreement.

  • 'That was the 9-o'clock news and weather.'
  • 'That was Mr and Mrs Johnson we were talking to.'
  • 'That is/was //That's the Jehovah's Witnesses at the door.'
  • 'That is/was //That's bacon and eggs as it should be cooked.'

.................

'That was the four ways ...' implies, as alphabet says, 'that program/demonstration showed the four ways'; 'those were the four ways' would emphasise the four ways themselves and is certainly correct. There are contexts where the former variant would not be reasonable:

  • Indicating that something (especially something unexpected) is really true, a polite corrective marker, a marker politely added to a statement others might not have expected for you, and a polite topic reorientation marker – those are the four ways that you can use 'actually'. (see Collins)

And while the example

  • That was his father and grandfather we saw in the cafe.

is the one I'd choose ('those were' sounds impersonal)

  • That was /those were farmer Brown's sheep.

are both available, and I'd choose whichever I thought fitted the context. 'That was' highlights the perhaps unexpected meeting the flock, 'those were' is either unmarked or stresses the ownership (perhaps they'd strayed several miles).

With pluralia tantum, I'd rarely use 'That is ...', though possibly 'That's ...' (and then only with certain examples):

  • Those are real Levi’s 501 jeans that Kim is wearing.
  • Hey, those are my trousers!
  • Those were the binoculars they recommended.
  • That's the remains of a Joshua tree.

There are cases where 'that's' is used non-referentially (as in 'that's that'):

  • That's the tidying up done, then.
  • That's the summer holidays over for another year.
  • That's the banns read.

Here, 'That's' is used no matter what appropriate noun phrase follows.

Edwin Ashworth
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  • This is very common, just like with there is. However, as with "there is", I think in very formal writing you'd want to preserve agreement, even though in more informal contexts, it's fine to use is + plural. – Stuart F Nov 24 '23 at 21:47
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As stated in the comments, "that" here refers to the video itself, or rather to the preceding segment thereof.

alphabet
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  • If "that was the four ways that ..." = "that video/segment/part was the four ways that ...", then why is there not "about"? I mean, it must be: "that was about the four ways that ..." = "that video/segment/part was about the four ways that ...". As far as I understand, without "about" it doesn't make sense. Am I right? Thanks. – Loviii May 27 '23 at 23:18
  • @Loviii That's a new question. – Greybeard May 28 '23 at 14:56
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Basically, that was is referring to a single noun phrase (the content of the video). As pointed out in another answer, you could replace "the four ways" with something like "the video saying X".

That was the video saying X.

Your other question about why "about" is not needed has the same answer. Imagine you just watched a band play a song on TV and it cuts back to the presenter. They would say something like "That was Coldway with their new single". It has the same format That was X. You wouldn't say They were Coldplay with their new single.

kandyman
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The definite article is a clue.

The presenter has in mind a lesson on "the four ways to use 'actually' ". that refers to the lesson, not to the individual "ways".

We see this also with recipes that consist of multiple steps but are perceived as a unity:

Take 1 egg. Whisk it with a cup of milk. Add the liquid to your flour and baking powder mix. Blend, but not too vigorously. That's all there is to it.

TimR
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