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Mr. Tom Posted 11 years ago
Vocabulary

He had a white dog...

Hi

Could you please tell me which of these works best? Can we use whom for animals?

He had a white dog which he called Tommy.
He had a white dog that he called Tommy.
He had a white dog whom? he called Tommy.

Thanks,

Tom

  

Top answer

" In AmE, the "that" clause would be restrictive. If he treated the dog as a human being, then the "whom" clause might be the correct stylistic choice. No question mark, though.

— Deadrat

  • " In AmE, the "that" clause would be restrictive.
  • If he treated the dog as a human being, then the "whom" clause might be the correct stylistic choice.
  • No question mark, though.
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3 Answers
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In AmE, the "which" clause would be non-restrictive and would require a comma after "dog."

In AmE, the "that" clause would be restrictive.

If he treated the dog as a human being, then the "whom" clause might be the correct stylistic choice. No question mark, though.
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Thanks, deadrat.

Just to make sure that I understand you correctly...

All of these are OK this way?

He had a white dog, which he called Tommy. (Correct)
He had a white dog that he called Tommy. (Correct)
He had a white dog whom he called Tommy. (informal)
He had a white dog who he called Tomm
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