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Anonymous Posted 17 years ago
Grammar
Who vs. whom
Which sentence is correct?
1. I told whomever it was to come in.
2. I told whoever it was to come in.
1. I told whomever it was to come in.
2. I told whoever it was to come in.
Top answer
Who has pretty much replaced whom is American dialect speech but technically, whomever is correct here. Who is for use with the subject of a phrase. Whom is for the object of a phrase.
- Who has pretty much replaced whom is American dialect speech but technically, whomever is correct here.
- Who is for use with the subject of a phrase.
- Whom is for the object of a phrase.
- In the example 'I' is the subject and it is the object.
- A simple trick is to replace 'who' or 'whom' with 'he' or 'him'.
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5 Answers
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Who has pretty much replaced whom is American dialect speech but technically, whomever is correct here.
Who is for use with the subject of a phrase. Whom is for the object of a phrase. In the example 'I' is the subject and it is the object.
A simple trick is to replace 'who' or 'whom' with 'he' or 'him'. Both whom and him end in 'm'. If 'him' is the correct choice then s
Who is for use with the subject of a phrase. Whom is for the object of a phrase. In the example 'I' is the subject and it is the object.
A simple trick is to replace 'who' or 'whom' with 'he' or 'him'. Both whom and him end in 'm'. If 'him' is the correct choice then s
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I don't know if "whoever it was" is considered a clause, but if so, the subjective case would be in order, IMHO.
I told whoever was there to come in.
In this case, "Whoever was there" is clearly a clause, and "whoever" is its subject.
The whole clause is object of the verb "to tell."
I told whoever was there to come in.
In this case, "Whoever was there" is clearly a clause, and "whoever" is its subject.
The whole clause is object of the verb "to tell."
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Avangi
I told whoever was there to come in.
In this case, "Whoever was there" is clearly a clause, and "whoever" is the subject.
You're right. The rule is correct, I applied it wrong. I restructured the sentence too much.
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Who(m)ever is determined by what follows.
I like whomever you like (that person is the object of 'like').
I told whoever appeared that we were friends (that person is the subject of 'appeared').
I like whomever you like (that person is the object of 'like').
I told whoever appeared that we were friends (that person is the subject of 'appeared').
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Thanks for the help, guys. It ain't an easy one. I wasn't really sure. I'd say my solution was inaccurate and misleading, though the answer may have been correct.
Compare:
a. I told whoever was there to come in.
b. I told who[m]ever it was to come in.
c. I like whomever you like.
a. (whoever was there)
b. (it was whoever)
c. (you
Compare:
a. I told whoever was there to come in.
b. I told who[m]ever it was to come in.
c. I like whomever you like.
a. (whoever was there)
b. (it was whoever)
c. (you
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