I came across this line; "I'm happy that you're happy" in movie.
What does 'that' mean here? Does 'that' in here have the same meaning as 'when'?
I in no way thought that 'that' would address this kind of meaning.
1 Answer
"That" is a conjuction. It links two clauses, and it introduces a subordinate clause. The subordinate clause gives the reason or cause of the main clause. So "that" is close in meaning to "because".
I'm happy that she's happy. (the subordinate clause "she's happy" gives the reason why I'm happy.)
Unlike "when" there is no conditional sense. If "I'm happy when she's happy" then "Am I happy now" can't be answered, there isn't enough information. On the other hand "I'm happy that she's happy" implies that "I am happy now" and "She is happy now"
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1" So "that" is close in meaning to "because". -- I'm scared that you have a gun in your hand, I'm sad that your dog is dead. I'm surprised that you speak Spanish. Commented Aug 17, 2019 at 23:14
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Yes those are three examples where the meaning "that" is similar to "because". The word "that" has lots of other meanings and usages "He said that he was happy", "A man that is happy" and so on.– James KCommented Aug 18, 2019 at 7:24
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Yes, they were meant to be that type of example, which is why I included your words saying that, in quotes, at the start of the comment. Commented Aug 18, 2019 at 7:29