Whom who confusion?

Question

How do you know whether to use the word "who" or "whom" in a sentence? This has confused me for a long time.

Answer 1

Use "whom" when it is the subjective pronoun and "who" when it is the subject.

Who is going to the movies tonight?

To whom would I address the question of going to the movies tonight?

"Whom" is the object of the action. "Who" is the subject who is taking action.

Answer 2

If replacing he, she, we or they, then use WHO
if replacing him, her, us or them, then use WHOM

Or if the answer is he, she, we or they, then the question is WHO;
if the answer is him, her, us or them, then use WHOM

Or if it's a word like "people", "anybody", "someone", then if they are acting (the subject of the sentence) it is WHO
if they are being acted upon (the object) then it is WHOM

Examples: WHOM did you see? I saw HIM.
WHO owns this place? SHE does.

Who came? Everybody. Was there anybody WHOM you didn't know? I did not know Sally's brother (I did not know HIM).

Common mistakes even for those who are good at grammar:

Can I invite he and she to the party? WRONG!
Can I invite him and her. RIGHT.

Would you please talk to he and I later on? WRONG.
Would you talk to him and me later on. RIGHT.
Him and Me got a good thing goin' - colloquial -should be "he and I"; but let's not be so uptight! Some slang and poor usage is ok as long as you actually know what rules you are breaking (just ask Mark Twain!).

Hope this helps.

Answer 3

This is one that stumps me, too. It is one of very few items in The Elements Of Style by Strunk & White that inadequately touches the subject.
Incidentally, that book is the handiest item a writer can have and mine consists of only 92 pages, including the index...What was that?..No, I'm not a writer but I correspond and work with words.

Answer 4

You use 'who' when the word refers to the subject and 'whom' elsewhere.
Who is that?
Who gave you that?
You gave it to whom?
With whom were you talking?
In normal speech, most people would use 'who'.

Answer 5

I learned a really easy trick for this........
Okay, if you are going to ask a question, such as "Who/whom is watching TV?," you would use "who" because you can answer the question with "He is watching TV." Another example: "Who/whom do I give this to?" can be answered with "I give this to him." So, in this case, use whom.
My little rule: If you can answer the question with "him" then you use "whom"...they both end with "m"........If you answer the question with "he" use "who"
This has helped me tremendously over the years!!

Answer 6

"Whom" is the dative form of "who". "Whom" is an unknown person who is the recipient of an action. For example:

Who is that person? (Nominative form)

vs.

To whom are you taking that book? (Dative form)

Answer 7

"Who" is the subject of a sentence (the one is doing the action). "Whom" is the object of the sentence (the receiver of the action).

E.g. "Who is talking?"/"To whom is he talking?" or "Whom is he talking to?"

"Who is giving this gift"/"To whom are you giving it?"/"Whom are you giving it to?"

Answer 8

you use who when you are referring to the person as a subject.
(Who called a minute ago?)
You use whom when the person is referred to as a direct object.
(For whom are you waiting for?)

Answer 9

"thinks 2 much" has the most complete answer.

Answer 10

Use WHO when you would use HE/SHE/THEY.
Use WHOM when you would use HIM/HER/THEM.