If you’ve ever found yourself confused about when to use “who” and “whom,” then this article is for you. These two small words are quite confusing even among native English speakers. The challenge arises because both words sound identical and share the same base pronoun, “who.”
Let’s be clear about the difference between Who and Whom.
Understand the Difference Between Who and Whom
“Who” is used as a subject pronoun. It means that refers to the person who is acting. For example, Who is coming to the party? Here, “who” is the subject of the verb “is coming.” On the other hand, “Whom” is used as an object pronoun, meaning it is used to refer to the person who is the recipient of an action or the object of a preposition.
For example, To whom did you give the book? Here, “whom” is the object of the preposition “to” and the recipient of the action “give.” Use “who” when it acts as the subject of a verb or clause and answers the question “Who is doing the action?”, use “whom” when it acts as the object of a verb, preposition, or clause and answers questions like “whom are you talking to?” or “whom did you see?”
How to Use Who and Whom correctly?
Using “who” and “whom” correctly involves understanding their roles as pronouns in a sentence, particularly as subjects or objects.
Who (Subject Pronoun):
- “Who” is used as the subject of a verb. The subject is the person or thing that performs the action expressed by the verb.
- Example: Who made the delicious cake?
- In this sentence, “who” is the subject of the verb “made,” indicating the person acting.
Whom (Object Pronoun):
- “Whom” is used as the object of a verb or a preposition. The object is the person or thing that receives the action of the verb or the object of the preposition.
- Example: Whom did she invite to the party?
- In this sentence, “whom” is the object of the verb “invite,” indicating the person receiving the action.
To determine whether to use “who” or “whom,” you can apply a substitution test:
- Substitute “he” or “she” for the pronoun. If it makes sense, use “who.”
- Substitute “him” or “her” for the pronoun. If it makes sense, use “whom.”
Other Ways to Use Who and Whom Correctly
- Consider if he/she/they or he/her/them would be the response to the given question- If you can answer the question with her, then use whom. It’s easy to remember because they both end with m. If you can answer the question with she, then use who.
For example: “It went to them” is an appropriate response to the query, “To [who or whom] did the prize go?” (Said differently, “It went to they.” Whom is the appropriate pronoun in this question.
For example: “He went to the store” is a valid response to the query “[Who or Whom] went to the store?” (Saying “Him went to the store” is inappropriate.) The appropriate pronoun to use when asking “who”
- Simplify the sentence when determining who or whom is correct. If a complicated statement has additional terms that could confuse you, reduce its complexity to the essential subject, verb, and object. To find the word relationships, it can be helpful to rearrange the words in your mind.
For example: “Marie Antoinette and her ladies-in-waiting only invited [those] whom they thought loved parties as much as they did to their party.” The condensed version in the mind is “whom they considered.”
“Marie Antoinette prevented her mother from knowing [who or whom] she invited to the Petit Trianon.” The simplified mental version becomes: “[who or whom] she invited.” Then, you could rearrange it again to say: “she invited whom”, clarifying that she did something to (invited) whom.
- Keep in mind that in informal spoken language, the distinction between who and whom is less significant than in formal written language. It’s feasible that eventually the differences will disappear completely. For the time being, nevertheless, it’s critical to make this explicit in writing.
Examples of Who and Whom
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Who
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Who is going to lead the project?
- Explanation: In this sentence, “who” is the subject of the verb “is going to lead.” It refers to the person who will perform the action of leading the project.
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Who called you last night?
- Explanation: Here, “who” is the subject of the verb “called.” It refers to the person who performed the action of calling.
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Who is going to lead the project?
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Whom
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To whom did you give the keys?
- Explanation: In this sentence, “whom” is the object of the verb “give.” It refers to the person who received the keys.
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Whom are you inviting to the party?
- Explanation: Here, “whom” is the object of the verb “are inviting.” It refers to the person who will be invited to the party.
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To whom did you give the keys?
How to use Who and Whom correctly – FAQs
How to use Who and Whom correctly?
“Who” is used as a subject pronoun, meaning it is used to refer to the person who is performing an action while “Whom” is used as an object pronoun, meaning it is used to refer to the person who is the recipient of an action.
How do you use who and whom in a sentence?
“Use ‘who’ as the subject of a verb and ‘whom’ as the object of a verb or preposition.”
How to determine whether to use “who” or “whom”?
To determine whether to use “who” or “whom,” you can apply a substitution test:
- Substitute “he” or “she” for the pronoun. If it makes sense, use “who.”
- Substitute “him” or “her” for the pronoun. If it makes sense, use “whom.