Noun Clauses Beginning With That

They must function within another sentence pattern, always as nouns. A noun clause functions as subject, subject complement, direct object, or object of a preposition. A noun clause usually begins with a relative pronoun like "that", "which", "who", "whoever", "whomever", "whose", "what" and "whatsoever." A That-Clauses is an example of a noun clause, it can be subject or the object of the verb. 

Example:

Statement: 

1. He is good actor.

2. The world is round.

Noun Clauses: 

A. I think That he is a good actor.

B. I think He is a good actor.

C. We know (That) the world is round. 

Explanation: In (A): That he is a good actor is a noun clause. It is used as the object of the verb Think. The word That , when it introduces a noun clause has no meaning in itself. It simply the marks the beginning of the clause. Frequently it is omitted , as in (B), especially in speaking (If used in speaking, it is unstressed). 

3. She doesn't understand spoken English

4. The world is round.

Noun Clauses:

D. That she doesn't understand spoken English is obvious.

E. It is obvious (That) she doesn't understand spoken English.

F. That the world is round is a fact.

G. It is a fact that the world is round

Explanation:

In (D): The noun clause (That she doesn't understand spoken English) is the subject of the sentence. The word That is not omitted when it introduces a noun clause used as the subject of a sentence, as in (D) and (F). More commonly the word it functions as the subject and the noun clause is placed at the end of the sentence, as in (E) and (G).