Who Versus Whom

Today's topic is "who" versus "whom." I've received many requests from listeners to cover this topic. Here's Noreen: I just wondered if possibly in one of your episodes you could go through the use of who versus whom. I think that's a common misunderstanding with many people who write. And an unnamed caller: "Who" and "whom": that's always a tough one. "Who" or "Whom"? So here we go. First, to know whether to use "who" or "whom," we need to talk about the difference between subjects and objects because 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. I know: subject and object sound pretty abstract, but it's easy. Still having a hard time remembering? Just "Whom" I love you. OK. For example, it is "Whom did you step on?" Take the "Who" Versus "Whom" Quiz ⇒ Just "Who" So when is it OK to use "who"? A Quick and Dirty Tip Still too hard to remember? But if you are trying to ask, "Who (or whom) stepped on Squiggly?"

Questions: wh- questions - English Grammar Today - Cambridge Dictionary Wh-questions begin with what, when, where, who, whom, which, whose, why and how. We use them to ask for information. The answer cannot be yes or no: A:When do you finish college? A:Who is your favourite actor? We usually form wh-questions with wh- + an auxiliary verb (be, do or have) + subject + main verb or with wh- + a modal verb + subject + main verb: Warning: When what, who, which or whose is the subject or part of the subject, we do not use the auxiliary. What fell off the wall? Who bought this? Compare Wh-questions ask for information and we do not expect a yes-no answer to a wh-question. A:Where’s the coffee machine? A:How old is your dog? We can add emphasis to wh-questions in speaking by stressing the auxiliary verb do. When the wh-word is the object of the sentence, the do auxiliary is stressed to make it more emphatic: A:How was your weekend in Edinburgh? When the wh-word is the subject of the sentence, we can add the auxiliary do to make it emphatic. A:So who does live there?

Questions: interrogative pronouns ( what, who ) - English Grammar Today - Cambridge Dictionary We use interrogative pronouns to ask questions. They are: who, which, whom, what and whose. These are also known as wh-words. Questions using these are called wh-questions: Who called last night? Which keys are yours? Whom do I ask for at the desk? What did you do when the electricity failed? Whose watch is this? We use who and whom on their own: Who paid? Whom did you speak to? We can use whose, which and what either on their own (as pronouns) or with a noun head (underlined): We can use who, whose, which and what both as subject and object: Who is the best footballer in the world? Who did you meet? What happened next? What did you buy? Warning: We use whom as an object in formal styles. Whom did you give the book to? To whom did you give the book? We use what when we ask about specific information from a general range of possible answers: What’s the tallest building in the world? What did you say? What’s your address? [looking at a list of addresses] Which hand do you write with?

Whose - English Grammar Today - Cambridge Dictionary Whose is a wh-word. We use whose to ask questions and to introduce relative clauses. We use whose to ask a question about possession: Whose birthday is it today? Whose house was used in the film ‘Gosford Park’? Whose are these gloves? We use whose in indirect questions: Juliet wondered whose the sports car was. Warning: Don’t confuse whose and who’s. Whose book is this? Who’s driving us home? We use whose to introduce a relative clause indicating possession by people, animals and things: John works with that other chap whose name I can’t remember. Shirley has a 17-year-old daughter whose ambition is to be a photographer. This is the book whose title I couldn’t remember. We don’t use whose when we mean who’s (who is) Who’s there? Not: Whose there? Whose little brother is he? Not: Who’s little brother is he?

Subject object questions Check the answers to this exercise » Subject object questions. Choose the right words to complete the following questions in English about subject and object. Who _____ ? Content Frame You almost answered your own question when you wrote: "What is the best way to explain.?" What is used to ask a question when there are an unknown number or infinite possibilities for an answer. You know that there are many, many ways that exist to address your question, and you want to find out—from all those possibilities that you might not even know about—what the best way is. (In “What is the best way to explain…? Content Frame I live in Taiwan. English is not our native language. I have a question. When we ask about people's profession, which sentence should we use? What do you do? or What are you? Please tell me the correct way of usage. When we don't know anything about a person's job or profession, we never say "What are you?" It's not generally OK to ask "What do you do?"

Wh- Words in English Definition and Examples In English grammar, a "wh- word" is one of the function words used to begin a wh- question: what, who, whom, whose, which, when, where, why, and how. Wh- words can appear in both direct questions and indirect questions, and they are used to begin wh-clauses. In most varieties of English, the wh- words are used as relative pronouns. Wh- words are also known as interrogatives, question words, wh- pronouns, and fused relatives. Here are explanations from other texts: List of Wh-words by Parts of Speech "Wh- words are unique among flag words in that they belong to different parts of speech. Wh-ever Word "A member of a class of words which resemble wh- words, from which they are derived by the addition of the suffix -ever: whoever, whichever, wherever, whenever, however and so on. wh-ever words begin nominal relative clauses and universal conditional clauses: Wherever you go, you'll have a ball." Wh- Words in Noun Clauses Wh- Movement

How to Ask Questions in English There are many ways to ask questions in English. It's important to understand the situation when deciding how to ask questions. In other words, is the question you want to ask a polite request? Would you like to confirm the information you already know? Are you gathering details about a subject? How to Ask Direct Questions Direct questions are the most common type of question in English. (Question Word) + Auxiliary + Subject + Verb Form + (objects) + ? Examples: When do you get to work? How to Ask Yes/No Questions Yes/No questions refer to simple questions you ask to receive either a yes or no as a response. Auxiliary + Subject + Verb Form + (objects) + ? Does he live in New York? How to Ask Subject and Object Questions Look at the following example sentence and questions: Jason likes playing golf. What does Jason like playing? In the first question, we are asking about the object. Wh? Who does he follow online? In the second question, we are asking for the subject of the action. Wh? Which Who

Wh Questions Guide and Usage for ESL Learning how to ask questions is essential in any language. In English, the most common questions are known as "wh" words because they begin with those two letters: where, when, why, what, and who. They can function as adverbs, adjectives, pronouns, or other parts of speech, and are used ask for specific information. Who Use this word to ask questions about people. Who do you like? Who has he decided to hire for the job? In other instances, "who" serves as the subject. Who studies Russian? Who would like to take a vacation? In formal English, the word "whom" will replace "who" as the direct object of a preposition. To whom should I address this letter? For whom is this present? What Use this word to ask about things or actions in object questions. What does he do at weekends? What do you like to eat for dessert? By adding the word "like" to the sentence, you can ask for physical descriptions about people, things, and places. What type of car do you like? What is Mary like? When When does the bus leave?