Content

• To step
• Tips
• Warnings

Using the word correctly who and whom in questions and phrases may seem like a meaningless battle of words waged on a linguistic battlefield by English language purists. However, the correct use of these words remains important in formal situations and especially when it comes to formal texts. After reading this article, you will find it easier to deal with the difference between "who" and "whom", which will make you appear smart and articulate.

To step

1. Know the difference between who and whom. Both who and whom are relative pronouns. However, "who" is used as topic of a sentence, to indicate who is doing something (like he or she). On the other hand, "whom" is used as the direct or indirect object of a verb or preposition, to indicate who is undergoing the action (such as him or her).
   • Although there is often a preposition (at, by, for, in, with, to) before "whom", this is not always the case, so the key question is: "Who (who) does what with whom (whom ) ". What follows is a quick way to determine which pronoun to use in which question.
2. Use who when referring to the subject of a sentence or clause.
   • Who brought the paper inside?
   • Who talked to you today?
   • Who went to dinner?
   • Who ate the cake?
   • Our job is to determine who qualifies.
3. Use whom when referring to the direct or indirect object of a verb or preposition.
   • To whom it may concern:
   • To whom did you talk today?
   • Whom does Sarah love?
4. Ask yourself the answer to the question he / she or him / her could be. If you can reply with him / her, then use whom. This is easy to remember because both "him" and "whom" end with an "m". If you can answer the question with he / she, then use who.
   • Example: An appropriate answer to the question, "To [who or whom] did the prize go? "is," It went to him. "(You don't say," It went to he. ") The correct noun for this question is whom.
   • Example: An appropriate answer to the question, "[Who or Whom] went to the store? "is," He went to the store. "(You don't say," Him went to the store. ") The correct noun for this question is who.
5. Simplify the sentence if you want to determine whether your who or whom must use. Since the other words in a complex sentence might confuse you, simplify the sentence so that it only contains a subject, verb, and direct or indirect object. It helps if you switch the words around in your head to understand the relationship between the different words. For instance:
   • Marie Antoinette and her ladies-in-waiting only invited people to their party [who or whom] they considered to love parties as much as they did. "The simplified version then becomes:"whom they considered. "
   • Marie Antoinette prevented her mother from knowing [who or whom] she invited to the Petit Trianon. "The simplified version becomes:" [who or whom] she invited. "Then you can rearrange the words, so:" she invited whom", indicating that whom the act undergoes.
6. Know the difference between who and whom is less important in informal language than in written, formal language. It may be that this distinction will lapse in the future. But now it remains important to be able to keep the two apart when writing a text.

Tips

• Ask the question, "who did what to whom?"
• Learning to distinguish between "who" and "whom" can also help you with grammar and understanding languages ​​other than English. It is also good to know if you want to be able to speak and write fluent English.
• You can use the who and whom bypass, but that usually looks artificial. If you write "To which person did the prize go?" because you don't remember that whom is the correct pronoun, then you have avoided a grammatical error at the expense of beautiful language.
• A reminder to distinguish direct object (object) and subject: if you say "I love you", then "you" is the "object of your affection" (English expression) and thus the object (direct object) of the sense. "I" is the subject. "[Whom or Who] do I love?" is "Whom do I love?" because the answer, "you", is an object.
• Learning another language can be of great help. In most languages, using "who" instead of "whom" can lead to great confusion. A good example is in German or Spanish.
• The CCAE (Canadian Council for the Advancement of Education) recommends that you always use "who" at the beginning of a sentence.
• When you use "who" or "whom" in a subordinate clause, the choice depends on the function of the pronoun, so as subject or direct object. Regardless of whether the subordinate clause acts as a subject or direct object in the entire sentence.

Warnings

• There is much confusion and misuse on this subject. Using correctly whom comes across as if you have mastered the language, but incorrect use can come across as stilted. Use whom never as a subject. This is just as wrong as confusing who and whom. Many people will think that you want to appear formal.
  • "Whom are you?" is wrong. The correct form is "Who are you?"
  • "John is the man whom I expect to be awarded the prize" is wrong. It should be, "John is the man who I expect to be awarded the prize."