Have you ever gotten confused about whether you should use ‘who’ or ‘whom’ in a sentence? What’s the difference between the two words?
“Who” is the subject of a sentence – such as, who or what is performing the action. “Whom” is the object of a verb (an action word) or a preposition (such as to, with, over, under).
See the examples below:
He went to the dance last weekend. (Subject: He; verb: went)
Who went to the dance last weekend? (Subject: who; verb: went)
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I would like to dance with him. (“him” follows the preposition “with”)
With whom would you like to dance? (“whom” follows the preposition “with”)
A very simple rule of thumb is to think whether you can use “he” or “him” in the sentence in the place of who/whom. If you would say “him,” use “whom.” If you would use “he,” then use “who.”
Now you try:
To _______ in particular are you referring?
I would like to know _______ spilled the beans.
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To whom in particular are you referring? (Think: “Are you referring to him?” or “Are you referring to he?”)
I would like to know who spilled the beans. (Think: Am I saying “He spilled the beans,” or “Him spilled the beans?”)
See the examples below:
He went to the dance last weekend. (Subject: He; verb: went)
Who went to the dance last weekend? (Subject: who; verb: went)
----------------------------------------------------------
I would like to dance with him. (“him” follows the preposition “with”)
With whom would you like to dance? (“whom” follows the preposition “with”)
A very simple rule of thumb is to think whether you can use “he” or “him” in the sentence in the place of who/whom. If you would say “him,” use “whom.” If you would use “he,” then use “who.”
Now you try:
To _______ in particular are you referring?
I would like to know _______ spilled the beans.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
To whom in particular are you referring? (Think: “Are you referring to him?” or “Are you referring to he?”)
I would like to know who spilled the beans. (Think: Am I saying “He spilled the beans,” or “Him spilled the beans?”)