A lot of people, including many, many Germans, mix the
conjunction dass with
the relative pronoun das.
The English only use that, which makes things still
more complicated. But if we make clear the function
the two words have, the difference should become more
clearer.
Compare these two phrases.
He said
that he went to school.
The little boy that
always goes to school this way, is in first
grade.
for further clarification see the same sentence with a different relative pronoun:
The little boy, who always goes to school this way, is in first grade
In the first phrase that is a conjunction that combines
two different clauses, in the second phrase it is a
relative pronoun. The difference is made also in writing,
because the conjunction has ss.
Decide whether there is das or dass in the following
phrases: