Which witch?

Hiya Papayas!

Today we are discussing "which." I really like this word. I don't know exactly why, but I think it goes along well with "whom," because they are both words that are rarely used correctly. The three "wh" words in one sentence was not intentional, by the way.

I suppose that mostly we should emphasize and explain the difference between "which" and "where." Where is a place. Always. "Where are you going?" "where did you get that coffee?" "I don't know where I am." Every time you use the word "where," you should be describing a physical place.

Which, on the other hand, can be one of many things. It can describe an object, item, or person, and it can even describe a metaphysical place, as in "the part of the book in which the Giving Tree provides shade." You would not say "where," because a part of a book is not a physical place. Hopefully you all know other ways to use "which," like "which watermelon will you get?" and "I don't know which one to pick."

There are other, more complicated rules for using which, but they are less important and more confusing, so for now it is only important to remember that you use "which" when you feel like saying "where," but realize you are not describing a physical place (one that you can stand in, etc.).


Update 11/17/10!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nwe3xewYWoc
This link will show you a trailer for the new E! show, "Bridalplasty." As abhorrent as I may find the premise of this show, the point of me linking you to it is that in the last few seconds of the promo, the narrator says "the only show where the winner gets cut." The first (and unfortunately not the only) time I saw this trailer, I had just written this post and realized that they use where completely incorrectly! How do we know this? Because where is a place, of course! So what should the narrator actually say? This: "the only show in which the winner gets cut." Excellent work, Watsons.