Subject and object pronouns
are two different kinds of pronouns (words that replace nouns) that play
different grammatical roles in sentences:
- A subject pronoun (I, we, he, she, they,
or who) refers to the person or thing that performs an action. It normally
appears at the start of a sentence, before the verb. - An object pronoun (me, us, him, her,
them, or whom) refers to the person or thing affected by an action. It normally
comes after a verb or preposition. - All other pronouns (e.g., “you,” “it,”
“this,” “one,” “what”) and nouns (e.g., “dog”) have only one form, which is
used for both cases.
Subject & Object Pronouns
Subject pronouns | Object pronouns |
I go to the library regularly. | Jana |
We haven’t met before. | There's |
You should visit Paris. | Everyone's |
He said that John would handle it. | Don’t |
She has applied for several jobs. | Lots |
It looks like a tiger. | Somebody |
They are arriving tomorrow. | Let's |
Who wants to go first?
| Whom |
Note
The only pronouns with different subject
and object forms are the personal pronouns (except for “you” and “it”) and the
relative or interrogative pronouns who and whom. With other pronouns (and
nouns), you don’t need to worry about case.
Subject
pronouns
A subject pronoun (sometimes called a
nominative pronoun) functions as the subject of a verb. That means that it
represents the person/people or thing(s) that perform the action described.
Because of this, it normally appears at the start of the sentence, followed by
a verb.
Examples: Subject pronouns
He ran away.
They are stacked in a pile under the
desk.
Who took my umbrella?
In more complex sentence structures, a
subject pronoun may appear in other positions—in the middle of a sentence,
after the verb, or separated from the verb. For example, it may form part of a
relative clause or a question, or some other words may come between it and the
verb.
Examples: Other uses of subject pronouns
The woman who had spoken to me
introduced herself as Clara.
He always goes out for drinks on Friday
night.
Did we ever visit Egypt before?
She and I, despite our differences, have
a surprisingly good relationship.
Object pronouns
An object pronoun (sometimes called an
objective pronoun) functions as the object of a verb or preposition. That means
that it represents the person/people or thing(s) affected by an action. An
object pronoun normally appears after a verb (e.g., “tell”) or preposition
(e.g., “to”).
Examples: Object pronouns
We should ask him.
They wouldn’t let us come inside.
Take it from me: just talk to her about
it.
To me, it seems simple enough.
The object pronoun isn’t always right
next to the verb or preposition it relates to. Separation commonly occurs with
whom when it’s used as a relative pronoun or an interrogative pronoun. Some
style guides recommend keeping the preposition and the pronoun together when
possible, but it’s not mandatory.
Examples: Other uses of object pronouns
Everyone whom I spoke to told me the
same thing. [or “Everyone to whom I spoke …”]
He was the last person whom I expected
to see.
Whom should we call in case of an emergency?
Note
The object of a verb can be considered
either a direct object (e.g., “I see them”) or an indirect object (e.g., “he
gave them some candy”). But this makes no difference to which pronoun you
should use; it’s the object pronoun in both cases.

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