Who vs. Whom: The Definitive Grammar Guide
What is the difference between who and whom?
The difference between who and whom is their grammatical function in a sentence. Who is a subject pronoun used to describe the person performing an action. Whom is an object pronoun used to describe the person receiving an action or following a preposition. A simple way to decide is to see if the answer is 'he' (who) or 'him' (whom).
Who vs. Whom Comparison
| Feature | Who | Whom |
|---|---|---|
| Grammatical Role | Subject pronoun | Object pronoun |
| Function | Performs the action | Receives the action |
| Replacement Test | Replace with "he" or "they" | Replace with "him" or "them" |
| Common Placement | Before the verb | After the verb or preposition |
| Preposition Use | Rarely follows a preposition | Frequently follows a preposition |
| Tone | Standard/Informal | Formal/Academic |
When to use who
Use who when the pronoun acts as the subject of a sentence or a clause. The subject is the entity doing the verb. In academic writing, who often introduces relative clauses that provide more information about a person. If you can substitute the word with 'he,' 'she,' or 'they' and the sentence still makes sense, who is the correct choice.
When to use whom
Use whom when the pronoun acts as the object of a verb or a preposition. This means the person is being acted upon rather than doing the acting. It is most commonly found in formal research papers after prepositions such as 'to,' 'from,' 'with,' and 'by.' If you can substitute the word with 'him,' 'her,' or 'them,' then whom is the correct choice.
Examples in academic writing
### Subject Usage (Who) **Incorrect:** Whom wrote the definitive study on climate change? **Correct:** Who wrote the definitive study on climate change? *Annotation: 'Who' is the subject performing the action of writing.* ### Object Usage (Whom) **Incorrect:** The participants, who the researchers selected, were all students. **Correct:** The participants, whom the researchers selected, were all students. *Annotation: 'Whom' is the object because the researchers are the ones doing the selecting.*
The he/him shortcut
To quickly check your grammar, try the he/him test. Ask a question based on your sentence. If the answer is 'he,' use who. If the answer is 'him,' use whom.
- [Who/Whom] won the award? Answer: He won the award. (Use Who)
- [Who/Whom] did the committee choose? Answer: The committee chose him. (Use Whom)
- With [who/whom] are you studying? Answer: I am studying with him. (Use Whom)
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