The police officer was waiting for her whom she met ten years ago by the same bridge.

Question

a) The police officer was waiting for her whom she met ten years ago by the same bridge.

Source: school exam

Hello,
The above blue sentence is wrong but I don't know which part of the sentence has made it wrong. I want to know that which part of the sentence has a wrong word order that makes it wrong.
I asked this question in http://forum.wordreference.com/threads/the-police-officer-was-waiting.3222388/#post-16310218. One native English speaker said that "for her whom she" is the odd word order that makes the whole sentence wrong.

But if "for her whom she" is wrong, then one other native English speaker gave me a sentence that proves that "for her whom she" is OK. Look at this => We are waiting for him whom you met by the bridge. => correct

Could you please be kind enough to tell me that which part of this sentence is odd? I'll be grateful.

Tahnk you.

Mister Micawber · Accepted Answer

sb70012Could you please be kind enough to tell me that which part of this sentence is odd?

I certainly don't like either sentence one little bit. They may be constructed according to grammar principles, but they are not competently native. Just recast:

The police officer was waiting for the woman she met ten years ago by the same bridge.
We are waiting for the man you met by the bridge.

Sb70012 · Answer

Mister MicawberThe police officer was waiting for the woman she met ten years ago by the same bridge.

Thank you but why don't you use "her" instead of "the woman"? If that's the problem, then the sentence shouldn't be incorrect. Should it?

Thank you.

Mister Micawber · Answer

sb70012 why don't you use "her" instead of "the woman"?

We don't do it that way.

Sb70012 · Answer

Is it also correct if I use "whom" after "the woman"?

I mean: The police officer was waiting for the woman whom she met ten years ago by the same bridge.

Mister Micawber · Answer

sb70012The police officer was waiting for the woman whom she met ten years ago by the same bridge.

Yes, that works much better than your other permutations.

CalifJim · Answer

sb70012The police officer was waiting for her whom she met ten years ago by the same bridge.

By the way, if 'police officer' and 'she' are coreferential, the police officer is a woman. If those are not supposed to be coreferential, there may be three people involved here.

Officer O'Malley was waiting for Betty, whom Ellen met ten years ago by the same bridge.

The whole thing is confusing enough to make you scream.

______________

Constructions like "her whom" and "him whom" are grammatical, but they are from a centuries-old style. Most examples that can be found are Biblical. Others are from very old fiction. Modern English does not use those constructions.

And again another scripture saith, They shall look on him whom they pierced.
Him whom *** shall make manifest is a messianic figure in the religion of Bábism.
In that day, saith the Lord, I will gather up her that halteth: and her that I had cast out, I will gather up: and her whom I had afflicted.
I allowed myself to make use of this stratagem, that it might procure for me the felicity of being the slave of her whom I adored. (1825)
Her whom he had deemed lost—lost here and hereafter—was by his side, devoted to him alone. (1837)

CJ

The police officer was waiting for her whom she met ten years ago by the same bridge.

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