eslHQ Home
User Name Password
Lost Password? | Join eslHQ.com, it's FREE!
View today's posts
Search Extras Help   

Reply
 
LinkBack Thread Tools Display Modes
  #1 (permalink)  
Old May 15th, 2010, 06:29 am
eslHQ Member
 
Join Date: Apr 9th, 2010
Posts: 7
Sasuke is on a distinguished road
Default Who vs Whom in two Sentences

I would like to know if both these two sentences are acceptable/correct or incorrect.

John, who you met yesterday, is my father.
or
John, whom you met yesterday, is my father.

In the main proposition John is, without doubts, the subject.
But in the relative, shall I use whom or who?

And, again:

I have found a man who will complete the work.
or
I have found a man whom will complete the work.

In this case the subject is me (I) and the man is the object...
So, do I have to use who or whom?
I suppone whom to be wrong in the second sentence, but I am not completely sure.

Thanks!
Reply With Quote
  #2 (permalink)  
Old May 15th, 2010, 07:46 am
Sue
 
Join Date: Oct 8th, 2006
Location: Milan
Posts: 1,406
susan53 is on a distinguished road
Default Re: Who vs Whom in two Sentences

You need to distinguish between the subject and object of the main clause and the subject and object of the relative clause. In your second example a/the man is the object of the main clause but the subject of the second :
I have found a man (Object). The man (subject) will complete the work
= I have found a man (object) who(subject) will complete the work.
who refers to the object of the previous clause in terms of meaning, but forms the grammatical subject of the relative clause. therefore who is obligatory.

Your first example is different. Here the underlying idea is :
John (subject) is my father. You (Subject) met John (object) yesterday.
So in the relative clause, who replaces the object (John):
John, who(object) you (subject) met yesterday, is my father.

Here, when the relative pronoun replaces the object, whom is grammatically possible but is almost never used except in formal written style. This type of non-defining relative clause is rare in spoken language (as opposed to defining relative clauses - something like Do you remember the man who you met yesterday? John? Well, he's my father) and if you wrote this sentence it would probably be in, maybe, an e-mail to a friend. And so informal, meaning that who would be more appropriate.

When it is used nowadays, it is frequently included after a preposition. So, for example :

... The declining number of school leavers, many of whom enter nursing, will result in an ...
... the larger communities of Turkic-Mongol peoples to whom they were related.
...the party leader, Mr Rezsoe Nyers, with whom he has been waging a long-running feud,
...the fashionable decorator Francis Lenygon, by whom Margaret was casually employed
__________________
An ELT Notebook
The DELTA Course
Reply With Quote
Reply


Currently Active Users Viewing This Thread: 1 (0 members and 1 guests)
 

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

vB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Trackbacks are On
Pingbacks are On
Refbacks are On

Similar Threads Replies
C'est à Toi: Unit 2, Leçon B: Scrambled Sentences 0
Jumbled Sentences 0
sentences 0
EMT: Jumbled Sentences 0
Are you + adjective opposites jumbled sentences 0

Find the Best TEFL, TESL, TESOL & CELTA Certification Courses - User Submitted Ratings & Reviews for Online, Distance & Abroad TEFL Courses. Over 3,500 reviews of 100+ TEFL schools!

Teach English in Thailand - Onsite and Combined TEFL certification courses in Phuket, Thailand.


Free ESL Flashcards


Similar Threads Replies
C'est à Toi: Unit 2, Leçon B: Scrambled Sentences 0
Jumbled Sentences 0
sentences 0
EMT: Jumbled Sentences 0
Are you + adjective opposites jumbled sentences 0


All times are GMT -5. The time now is 08:29 am.

All materials from this website are for classroom-use only. Digital redistribution of materials, in part or in whole, is strictly forbidden!

Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.6.8
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.
Search Engine Optimization by vBSEO 3.6.0 PL2