with whom or with who

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forsin
Bilingual Newbie
Beiträge: 3
Registriert: 16. Okt 2013 09:56
Muttersprache: deutsch

with whom or with who

Beitrag von forsin »

hello again,

is it true, that - when we use 'who' with a preposition....................................to who-m, or with who-m, we have to add the 'm' and say 'whom'

Who/m did he talk to?
His parents, with who/m he has a very good relationship, are abroad.

thanks
forsin :freak2:




Duckduck
Anglo Master
Beiträge: 3687
Registriert: 1. Okt 2009 14:25
Muttersprache: Deutsch

Re: with whom or with who

Beitrag von Duckduck »

forsin hat geschrieben:
hello again,

is it true, that - when we use 'who' with a preposition....................................to who-m, or with who-m, we have to add the 'm' and say 'whom'
Hi forsin!
Hurray, and here's another of the questions every grammarian loves... :wink:
Firstly: Yes and no!
Secondly: It all depends!
Thirdly: Do you really want to know? :lol:

Serious now:
The simple rule is:
"who"
refers to the subject of a verb,
"whom" refers to the object of a verb or a preposition.
So far so good.

:watch: Nowadays, the distinction is as good as not observed anymore in conversational English but only in formal writing. (Should you need the information for school or any kind of exam or whatever, then you have to observe it, of course!)

This is what the expert Michael Swan says:
"Whom ... is rather unusual, especially in conversational English. It is generally either left out, or replaced by who or that. It is almost impossible in clauses that end with a preposition." (Practical English Usage, 525)

This would rule out the first of your examples below. When a preposition is used, the "whom" must always follow it, i.e. the preposition must not come at the end of the sentence if you want to use "whom".

*Whom did he talk to? should be: To whom did he talk?
His parents, with whom he has a very good relationship, are abroad. OK

And a link on top:
http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/words/who-or-whom


thanks
forsin :freak2:
Cheers!
Duckduck
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