who or whom over the course of 3 years

by Miss Ursula Torp 10 min read

When do you use whom and who in a sentence?

The word whom should be used when the person it’s describing is the object of a sentence, or if it comes after a preposition. In this article, we’ll go over the two terms, when to use each, and give you some rules and examples on how to make the correct choice in the future. Who vs. Whom: What’s the difference?

Is it correct to replace who with the objective form whom?

If the sentence “Who were you talking to just now?” is acceptable in informal settings, why is it incorrect to replace the word who with the objective form whom but still leave the preposition at the end of the sentence? Thanks. Only the first is technically correct. Put the preposition to before the object pronoun whom.

When does whom replace who in grammar?

Whom replaces who in spots where that word would receive the action of the verb or complete the meaning of a preposition. Let's look at some of the grammatical places who tends to appear and see whether whom ought to go there instead.

What is the subject of the sentence who is who?

The pronoun "who" is the subject of the sentence. Check this by replacing "who" with a subjective pronoun, swapping in "she" or "he" for "who," as in: She is at the door. He is at the door. "Who" is always used as the subject of a sentence or clause, and "whom" is always used as an object.

When to use "whom"?

What is the difference between "who" and "whom"?

What does "whom" mean in a sentence?

Who and whom are relative pronouns?

Can you communicate in English without whom?

Is it easy to keep who and whom in their prescribed places?

See 3 more

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When Should Who or whom be used?

The Rule: Who functions as a subject, while whom functions as an object. Use who when the word is performing the action. Use whom when it is receiving the action.

Who and whom in a sentence?

“Who,” the subjective pronoun, is the doer of an action. For example, “That's the girl who scored the goal.” It is the subject of “scored” because the girl was doing the scoring. Then, “whom,” as the objective pronoun, receives the action. For instance, “Whom do you like best?” It is the object of “like”.

Who or whom should I ask?

The rule goes we should use 'who' to ask about the subject, and 'whom' to ask about the object.

Can you use whom for more than one person?

What if “Who/Whom” Refers to a Group? The trick works even when the who or whom refers to a group of people; simply use they and them instead of he and him. The m words still go together: them, him, whom, and whomever.

Who or whom exercises?

Choose the correct answer (who or whom?)To. who. whom. have you offered the flowers?Who. Whom. wrote that beautiful love poem?I just want to know. who. whom. made this delicious dish.Do you know the man. who. whom. ... My parents will accept. whoever. whomever. ... For. who. whom. ... He is a kind of person for. who. whom. ... Tell me, who. whom.More items...

Who vs whom in a question?

If the preposition is at the end of the question, informal English uses “who” instead of “whom.” (As seen in “Who will I speak with” above.) However, if the question begins with a preposition, you will need to use “whom,” whether the sentence is formal or informal. (As in “With whom will I speak?”)

Who or whom I will be meeting with?

When in doubt, try this simple trick: If you can replace the word with “he”' or “'she,” use who. If you can replace it with “him” or “her,” use whom. Who should be used to refer to the subject of a sentence. Whom should be used to refer to the object of a verb or preposition.

Who or whom should I ask to the dance?

Whom is used as the object of the verb or the object of a preposition. It's an objective pronoun. You asked whom to the dance? In this case, the subject and verb are “You asked.” The pronoun following the verb is the object of the verb, therefore whom is correct.

How do you use whom in a sentence examples?

Examples of “whom” in a sentence: He saw the faces of those whom he loved at his birthday celebration. She saw a lady whom she presumed worked at the store, and she asked her a question. Here dwells an old woman with whom I would like to converse.

Who I hired or whom I hired?

If the words “him” or “her” fit in, then you know to use “whom.” Who is calling? (I could easily say: “He is calling.” Therefore, “who” is correct.) Whom should I hire? (I could say: “I should hire her.” Therefore, “whom” is correct.

Who I taught or whom I taught?

The technically correct way is, "Who taught whom?" You use "who" for the subject (the one doing the action of teaching) and "whom" for the object (the one receiving the teaching).

Who vs whom for a group?

Use who when the person you mentioned previously in the sentence is the subject. You can use either who or which to refer to collectives, such as group, team. It was the group who/which decided. Use whom to refer to the person previously mentioned in a sentence when they are the object, not the subject.

Who and whom meaning?

Whom is often confused with who. Who is a subjective-case pronoun, meaning it functions as a subject in a sentence, and whom is an objective-case pronoun, meaning it functions as an object in a sentence.

Is it who or whom plural?

There is no plural form for “whom.” Similar to “who,” “whom” is also an interrogative pronoun that can refer to a singular or plural subject. If we can replace the subject with the pronouns “him,” “her,” or “them,” then “whom” is the correct form.

Who or Whom shall I say is calling?

"To whom should I say is calling?" would be incorrect grammar. The person calling is the subject, so it should be the subjective case, "who". And you're asking who is calling, not who they want to speak to.

Who said to whom sentence?

For example, “Who is the best in class?” If you rewrote that question as a statement, “He is the best in class.” makes sense. Use whom when a sentence needs an object pronoun like him or her. For example, “This is for whom?” Again, if you rewrote that question as a statement, “This is for him.” sounds correct.

Who vs. Whom: Rules & Examples - Study.com

When using proper grammar, many find the decision between using who versus whom very confusing. In this lesson, we will learn the rules on when to use who and when to use whom and some very ...

When to Use Who vs. Whom - Study.com

Who vs. Whom: When to Use Who or Whom . Who and whom are two of the most often confused pronouns in the world of grammar.While who is used in reference to a sentence's subject, whom is used as the ...

How to substitute "she" and "her"?

Try substituting “she” and “her”: She ate my sandwich. Her ate my sandwich. “She” works and “her” doesn’t. That means the word you want is who.

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Who vs. whom, what’s the difference?

Whom is often confused with who. Who is a subjective-case pronoun, meaning it functions as a subject in a sentence, and whom is an objective-case pronoun, meaning it functions as an object in a sentence.

Who, like I, he, she, we, and they?

Who, like I, he, she, we, and they, is used as the subject of a sentence. That means it performs actions.

When in doubt, substitute him?

When in doubt, substitute him (sometimes you’ll have to rephrase the sentence) and see if that sounds right. If him is OK, then whom is OK. If the more natural substitute is he, then go with who. For example: You talked to who/whom? It would be incorrect to say, “You talked to he?”, but saying, “You talked to him?” makes grammatical sense. So you would ask, “You talked to whom?”

How to use "who" and "whom"?

For example, instead of '"She rang the doorbell,"' try '"Who rang the doorbell?"' The same rule applies to whom. Change '"I will play baseball with them,"' to '"With whom will I play baseball?"'

How to choose who or whom?

Although who and whom can be easily confused, choosing the correct pronoun is as simple as remembering that who is a subjective pronoun, and whom is an objective pronoun. When in doubt, rereading the sentence either silently or aloud and asking if the pronoun answers who is a surefire way of knowing that the correct choice is the subjective pronoun, who. If who is not the answer to the question, the objective pronoun whom is the right answer. There are tips and tricks to remember which to use where, but practicing placement in a sentence after identifying its subject and verb, and saying the sentence aloud using both who and whom will help to distinguish the correct choice. Being familiar with the definitions of all parts of speech can also be helpful when reading and rereading a sentence before choosing who or whom. Knowing what subjects and verbs are, how to find them, and how to substitute pronouns for the subjects will pave the way for a more thorough understanding of both subjective and objective pronoun placement.

What is the difference between "who" and "whom"?

While who is used in reference to a sentence's subject, whom is used as the object of a preposition or verb. The correct use of whom can be easily distinguished by determining its placement in the sentence, and the same is true of Who. Here are some grammatical rules for the who and whom difference:

When to use "whom" in a sentence?

Use Whom in a sentence as the object of either a preposition or a verb. For example, "For whom are you waiting?" makes Whom the object of the preposition For.

What does it mean to enroll in a course?

Enrolling in a course lets you earn progress by passing quizzes and exams.

When to use "whom" or "whom"?

If "whom" is used for the objective case, "who" is used for the subjective case —when the pronoun is the subject of the sentence, or the person creating the action. Take the sentence: Who is at the door? The pronoun "who" is the subject of the sentence.

Who is Grace Fleming?

Grace Fleming, M.Ed., is a senior academic advisor at Georgia Southern University, where she helps students improve their academic performance and develop good study skills. Knowing when to use "whom" versus "who" can be difficult for even the most careful writers and speakers.

Is "who" a subject or object?

The pronoun "who" is the subject of the sentence. Check this by replacing "who" with a subjective pronoun, swapping in "she" or "he" for "who," as in: She is at the door. He is at the door. "Who" is always used as the subject of a sentence or clause, and "whom" is always used as an object.

Is "whom" a correct sentence?

The sentence may sound pretentious, even snobbish. But it is correct because "whom" is the subject of the infinitive "to," as well as the object of the sentence as a whole. Turn the sentence around so that the object is at the end:

Is "who" a subjective pronoun?

In the following sentences, "who" is correctly used in the subjective case. You can check this by replacing the pronoun "who" with another subjective pronoun, such as "she," "he," or "you," for example:

Are you confused? Who isn't?

Grace Fleming, M.Ed., is a senior academic advisor at Georgia Southern University, where she helps students improve their academic performance and develop good study skills.

What is the quick test in choosing between who and whom?

The quick test in choosing between who and whom is to substitute he or him. If he sounds better, who is correct; if him sounds right, whom is correct. That’s because as a pronoun whom is used to represent the object of either a verb or a preposition, while who represents the subject of a verb. He is the consultant whom we contacted for advice.

Who gives more information about Jacob?

The relative pronoun whom gives more information about Jacob, the person receiving – not doing – the action see. Use the subject form who for people doing an action and the object form whom for people receiving the action. eddi kewley November 16th, 2019. which is correct.

What is the subject complement?

A subject pronoun that follows a verb is called, in grammar, a subject complement or a predicative complement. In the phrase “who’s who,” the first “who” is the subject of the verb, and the second “who” is the subject complement, referring back to and mirroring the subject. A-Wall March 19th, 2018.

Is "who" a pronoun?

Increasingly, native speakers of English are adopting who as the preferred pronoun in informal conversation, even when whom, not who, is correct. This means that whom, when correctly used as an object pronoun, can sound more formal. In the two examples above, the formality can be toned down by omitting the pronoun in the first, ...

Can you talk with whoever?

You can just talk with whoever/whomever answers the phone. Even native English speakers get confused by this, because our instinct tells us that whom, not who, should follow the preposition with. However, there is another rule in English which dictates that every verb in a tense needs a subject. Here, whoever is the correct choice, since ...

Can you use "whom" in informal conversation?

Inconsistencies in tone can be jarring, but on the other hand, one can use whom in informal conversation without sounding stuffy.

Is "whom" a preposition?

Yes, that is correct! Whom is the object of the preposition with.

How many times can you use "whom" and "whom"?

Times when you can use either. 9 times out of 10, you can actually get away with using who and whom interchangeably. Whom is not used frequently in modern conversational English, but it is used in formal writing and speech. If a sentence is long or complicated, making it difficult to separate the preposition and noun, ...

How to choose between who and whom?

A simple rule to chose correctly between who and whom. The best way to remember the difference is with the he/him or she/her rule: If you can replace who or whom in a sentence with he/she then use who. If you can replace it with him/her then use whom.

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Preply is one of the leading educational platforms that provide 1-on-1 lessons with certified tutors via the exclusive video chat.

What is the common confusion in English?

It’s common for English learners to get confused as to when to use who and whom. Even native speakers struggle with the correct use of these terms!

When to use "who" in an interrogative sentence?

As can be seen from these examples, the rule is: if you can answer the question using he , then it’s correct to use who in the interrogative sentence. If you answer using him, then use whom.

When to use "to whom it may concern"?

To whom it may concern. This phrase is used to address someone in written form formally – the person responsible for caring for the matter about which we are writing – when we don’t know the name of the person.

Is it important to know who and whom?

The difference between who and whom is generally more important in writing than in speaking . Most of the time, if you use the wrong one in speech, even native speakers probably won’t notice. However, you should try to choose the correct version if you’re writing an important document, and it’s good to be aware of the proper rules.

What is the rule for who?

Basic rule: if it's a subject like he or she or they, then it's who.

What is the correct choice for whom?

Generally, if you can replace the object with an object pronoun (me, you, him, her, it, us, them), the correct choice is whom. Using the same drill as above, model some sentences using whom, then have your students rewrite the sentences, replacing whom with an object pronoun.

What does it mean to enroll in a course?

Enrolling in a course lets you earn progress by passing quizzes and exams.

Who wrote the book "For _____ the Bell Tolls"?

6. For _____ the Bell Tolls is a book by Ernest Hemingway.

What is the correct choice for a subject in a sentence?

Generally, if you can replace the subject with a subject pronoun (I, you, he, she, it, we, they), the correct choice is who. Once you've gone through the grammar, model some sentences using who as the subject, then have your students rewrite the sentences, replacing who with a subject pronoun. You can mix it up by modeling incorrect sentences and asking students to fix them using the subject pronoun rule.

When to use "whom"?

When to Use 'Whom'. Whom is both simple and complicated. It is simple in that it is simply the objective case of who, which means that it's the form of who that is in the object position in a sentence. The pair of words is analogous to they and them: just as we'd say (forgetting the lack of clarity) "They helped them," we'd say "Who helped whom.".

What is the difference between "who" and "whom"?

Here's the basic difference: Who performs the action of a verb (e.g. “ Who sent us this gift?“), while whom receives the action (“We got this gift from whom ?“). In grammar terms, that makes who a subject, and whom an object. When following a preposition, whom is the preferred choice (“ To whom should we address our thank you note?“).

What does "whom" mean in a sentence?

Who is a pronoun, which means that it's used instead of a noun or noun phrase to refer to a noun/noun phrase that has already been mentioned or that does not need to be named specifically. Whom replaces who in spots where that word would receive the action of the verb or complete the meaning of a preposition.

Who and whom are relative pronouns?

Who and whom also frequently function as relative pronouns, which means that they refer to a noun or noun phrase that was mentioned earlier: The person who told my dog about the sandwich was unhelpful. The sandwich's owner, who my dog apologized to, requires a replacement sandwich.

Can you communicate in English without whom?

One can communicate quite effectively in English—that is, make oneself understood accurately—entirely without whom. But we suspect that for a number of you that is not enough. We are quite certain, in fact, that some of you like whom very much and want to know how to use it correctly. This article is for YOU.

Is it easy to keep who and whom in their prescribed places?

After all that, surely no one can claim that keeping who and whom in their prescribed places is easy to do. In fact, it's about as easy as keeping a dog from eating an unguarded, and ostensibly abandoned, sandwich.

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