who / whom

Which one do you think is correct and why?

I think both of them are wrong. Am I true?

Sir,

I think (1) is coorect, because "whom" refers back the noun,which is object of realtive clause.

Thanks.

hanuman 2000,

These questions usually give me fits as a native speaker.

The man whom she married was a notorious drinker.
The man who she married was a notorious drinker.

Which one is correct?

This is how I tackle these types of questions.

I know that "he" is a subject. He hit the ball.

I know that "him"

And if I add "to" to the 2-d sentence, will it be correct in the formal English?
The man who she married to was a notorious drinker.
Or is it correct grammatically at all?

Hi maverick88,

I am not sure of your purpose with the "to". But it doesn't seem to work for me.

I keep thinking "to whom she (was) married" but then I think "whom she married" is simpler. Perhaps someone else can join in.

MountainHiker

I suppose one difference could be:

1. 'The man whom she married was a notorious drinker' – he was a notorious drinker when they got married.

2. 'The man to whom she was married was a notorious drinker' – he may have taken up drinking after they got married.

'The man whom she was married to...' is an unhappy mixture of the formal and the informal. If you have to say i

You can say who AND whom, but whom, would be the most correct.

You use who when you are referring to the subject of a clause and whom when you are referring to the object of a clause.

You don't need either for that sentence.

The first one is correct. I don't know how to explain it. She married him and not she married he.