Is it “you and I” OR “you and me”?
IT DEPENDS
Is the pronoun functioning as a subject?
You and I were elected as delegates.
OR Is the pronoun functioning as an object?
The chairperson asked you and me to be
delegates.
THIS IS PRONOUN CASE
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UWF WRITING LAB
RULES OF THUMB FOR
PRONOUN CASE
from Real Good Grammar, Too
by Mamie Webb Hixon
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Common Pronoun Problems
The lottery money was divided between Liz and I.
The office has no record of you having called.
Elise and myself bought tickets for The Lion King.
Please let either Morgan or I know your decision.
If there is a problem, please discuss it with Rus or I.
Angie’s parents discovered that it was her who wrecked the family
car.
Contact Randi or myself if you need additional information.
Finding a job will not be difficult for either Jason or I.
Michele is a better dancer than me.
Give the data to whomever requests it.
Vote for a candidate who you can trust.
Convincing we veterans to vote yes on the issue will be difficult.
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Solving Your Pronoun Problems
1. Recognize and learn the pronouns
which are limited to use in subject
positions (SUBJECT PRONOUNS) and
those which are limited to use in object
positions (OBJECT PRONOUNS).
2. Learn PETs (Pronoun Editing Tricks) to
help you locate pronouns that are used
incorrectly in your writing.
3. Learn the three-step who-whom trick.
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PRONOUNS
SUBJECT
PRONOUNS
I
he
she
we
they
who
OBJECT
PRONOUNS
me
him
her
us
them
whom
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Pronouns and Other People
PET 1: Ignore/delete
and and the other
people:
You and I figured out
the answer.
The professor asked
Angie and me to read
the text.
Everyone except Elise
and me attended the
meeting.
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Pronouns and Other People
INCORRECT
I really appreciate
your presence at me
and Justin’s
graduation party.
CORRECT
I really appreciate
your presence at my
and Justin’s
graduation party.
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Misspoken English –
Nonstandard Self- Pronouns
hisself
theyself
theyselves
theirself
theirselves
themself
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Standard English
-Self Pronouns
Reflexive/Intensive Pronouns – pronouns with a -self suffix
SINGULAR
myself
yourself
himself
herself
itself
PLURAL
ourselves
yourselves
themselves
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Misuse of –Self Pronouns
Morgan cooked a pasta dish for Rowena and
myself.
TEST SENTENCE:
Morgan cooked a pasta dish for Rowena and
myself.
INCORRECT:
Morgan cooked a pasta dish for myself.
CORRECT
Morgan cooked a pasta dish for Rowena and me.
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Correct Use of –Self Pronouns
CORRECT when the –self pronoun is
referring to the subject of the sentence.
Morgan cooked a pasta dish for Rowena
and himself.
Morgan cut himself while cooking.
I glanced in the mirror and saw myself.
Rowena was proud of herself for not
overeating and for staying on her diet.
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Just between you and I
OR
Just between you and me
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BETWEEN
Is it Between you and us
OR Between you and we?
OBJECT
PRONOUNS
SUBJECT
PRONOUNS
us
me
him
her
them
whom
whomever
we
I
he
she
they
who
whoever
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PET #2
Pronouns with Between
Remember that between is a preposition, so
you always need the object pronouns.
Object pronouns are me, him, her, us, them,
whom, and whomever.
The debate was between her and me.
A disagreement arose between him and his professor.
QUIZ: Voters will soon find out the difference between (he,
him) and his opponent.
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Pronouns with Other
Prepositions
Use object
pronouns after
prepositions
I hope you’ll consider
traveling “the world
and the seven seas”
with Randi and me.
The manager
promoted everyone
except his assistant
and me.
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PET #3
Pronouns with Other Nouns
Ignore/delete the
noun:
We women who are a part of
Emily’s List, a national
organization promoting the
election of women to political
offices, must stick together.
The instructor told us students
to use MLA manuscript format
for our papers.
After the rally, there were many
complaints about us students.
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PET 4: Pronouns with Gerunds
Use a possessive pronoun preceding a gerund
(a gerund is an –ing verb form used as a noun):
I am happy about your winning the lottery.
The bartender disapproved of my having a drink
before leaving the nightclub.
We appreciate your being a guest on our show.
Some possessive pronouns are my, his, her,
your, their, and our.
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PET 5
Pronouns after than or as
Insert the
elliptical/omitted
words:
My classmates are
much
older than I [am].
Janice is taller than I
[am].
Michele is a much better
dancer than he [is].
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Pronouns Following
Linking Verbs
Use subject pronouns after linking verbs.
PET 6: Reverse the order of the sentence.
The winner of the National Spelling Bee is she. [She is
the winner . . . .]
It must have been he who sent me the text message.
[He must have been it/the one . . . . ]
The subject pronouns are I, she, he, we, they,
who, and whoever.
Some linking verbs are am, is, are, was, and
were.
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Pronoun Etiquette
If you are using a first-person pronoun (I,
me, we, us ) with a noun or another
pronoun, mention yourself last:
Contact your academic advisor or me.
NOT Contact me or your academic advisor.
The office manager and I are in a meeting.
NOT I and the office manager are in a
meeting.
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Possessive Pronouns
yours
ours
hers
theirs
mine
its
NOT
NOT
NOT
NOT
NOT
NOT
your’s
our’s
her’s
their’s
mines
its’
The commencement speaker reminded the
graduates that the future is (their’s, theirs).
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Debunk the Pronoun Myth
MYTH:
A SUBJECT PRONOUN IS ALWAYS AT
THE BEGINNING OF A SENTENCE.
Mike admitted that he thought me and
Marclyn should not have married each
other.
Mike admitted that he thought Marclyn and
I should not have married each other.
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Avoid Glaring Pronoun Errors
DO NOT USE A PRONOUN TO FOLLOW
A NOUN IN THE SUBJECT POSITION:
My college roommate he works three jobs
and takes five classes.
My college roommate works three jobs
and takes five classes.
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SOLVING YOUR
WHO-WHOM
PROBLEMS
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TzUxeCGGHnA
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Informal uses of “who”
Who are you
gonna call –
Ghostbusters!
Who are you
voting for?
Who would you
like to speak to?
WHEN DO WE
USE WHOM?
IS WHOM ON THE
PRONOUN
EXTINCTION
LIST?
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SUBJECT
PRONOUNS
who
whoever
OBJECT
PRONOUNS
whom
whomever
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The 3-Step Who-Whom Trick
I = Isolate
S = Substitute
R = Rearrange and Read
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PET 7: The WHO-WHOM Trick
Though the
organization
cannot endorse a
political candidate,
each member may
support (whoever,
whomever) she
chooses.
STEP 1: Isolate the portion of
the sentence in which the
“who-whom” occurs
whoever, whomever she chooses
STEP 2: Change “who/whoever”
to “he”; change “whom/whomever”
to “him.”
STEP 3: Arrange the words in the
natural order of an English
sentence.
She chooses he OR she chooses him.
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Who versusWhom
Use who or whoever when you can replace the
word with he:
He is the candidate who should win.
(He should win.)
Give the money to whoever wins.
(He wins.)
Use whom or whomever when you can replace
the word with him:
He is a candidate whom we can trust.
(We can trust him.)
Give the money to whomever the team chooses.
(The team chooses him.)
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YOUR TURN
I’ve sent this email about
Earth Day to those whom
I think care.
Change “whom” to “him/them.”
Place words in the natural
order of an English sentence.
I think them care.
INCORRECT. Try “he/they.”
I think they care.
I’ve sent this email about
Earth Day to those who I
think care.
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Solving Your Pronoun Problems
The lottery money was divided between Liz and me. Pronoun with between
The office has no record of your having called. Pronoun with a gerund
Pronoun with another noun
Elise and I bought tickets for The Lion King.
Please let either Morgan or me know your decision.
If there is a problem, please discuss it with Rus or me.
Contact Randi or me if you need additional information.
Finding a job will not be difficult for either Jason or me.
Angie’s parents discovered that it was she who wrecked the family
car. Pronoun that renames the subject
Give the data to whoever requests it. Change “who”/”whoever” to “he”
Vote for a candidate whom you can trust. Change “whom” to “him”
Michele is a better dancer than I. Pronoun following “than”
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Let’s Practice!!!
Alcohol and tobacco are harmful to (whoever,
whomever) consumes them.
WHOEVER
If I should decide to buy a hunting license, (who,
whom) should I see?
WHOM
Dr. Evans asked Suzanne and (I, me) to explain
the recent studies in literary criticism.
ME
Just between you and (I, me), I think Lance
Armstrong is the best cyclist in the world.
ME
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Let’s Finish Up With a Few More.
(We, Us) students are worried about the rising
cost of textbooks.
WE STUDENTS…
I was happy to hear about you getting married.
…YOUR GETTING MARRIED.
That man thinks he is smarter than me.
…THAN I.
I am certain that the woman wearing the red
velvet jacket is her.
…IS SHE.
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