Use relative pronouns: who and whom
Key Notes:
- What Are Relative Pronouns?
- Relative pronouns connect a clause or phrase to a noun or pronoun. They provide more information about that noun.
- The two relative pronouns we will focus on are who and whom.
- Using “Who”:
- Who is used when referring to the subject of a sentence or clause. It indicates which person is performing the action.
- Example: “The teacher who helps us is very kind.”
- In this example, “who” refers to “the teacher,” the subject doing the action of helping.
- Using “Whom”:
- Whom is used when referring to the object of a verb or preposition. It indicates which person is receiving the action.
- Example: “The student whom I called is my friend.”
- Here, “whom” refers to “the student,” who is receiving the action of being called.
- How to Identify “Who” and “Whom”:
- To decide between who and whom, you can rephrase the sentence to see if it can be answered with “he” (use who) or “him” (use whom).
- Example: “The person who called you is waiting.”
- Can you say, “He called you”? (Yes, so use who).
- Example: “The person whom you met is my cousin.”
- Can you say, “You met him”? (Yes, so use whom).
- Example: “The person who called you is waiting.”
- To decide between who and whom, you can rephrase the sentence to see if it can be answered with “he” (use who) or “him” (use whom).
- Examples for Practice:
- Who: “I have a friend who loves to play soccer.”
- Whom: “She is the teacher whom I admire the most.”
- Who: “The artist who painted this picture is famous.”
- Whom: “The principal whom we spoke to was very helpful.”
- Common Mistakes to Avoid:
- Confusing who and whom. Remember:
- Use who when the pronoun is the subject (doing the action).
- Use whom when the pronoun is the object (receiving the action).
- Don’t overuse whom; in everyday conversation, many people use who instead of whom.
- Confusing who and whom. Remember:
- Practice Identifying Who and Whom:
- Look at sentences and identify whether to use who or whom based on whether the pronoun is acting as the subject or object. Discuss your reasoning with a partner or in class.
Let’s practice!🖋️
