whom

American  

[hoom] / hum /

pronoun

1. the objective case of who.

   Whom did you call? Of whom are you speaking? With whom did you stay?

2. the dative case of who.

   You gave whom the book?

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whom British  

/ huːm /

pronoun

1. the objective form of who , used when who is not the subject of its own clause

   whom did you say you had seen?

   he can't remember whom he saw

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Usage

It was formerly considered correct to use whom whenever the objective form of who was required. This is no longer thought to be necessary and the objective form who is now commonly used, even in formal writing: there were several people there who he had met before . Who cannot be used directly after a preposition – the preposition is usually displaced, as in the man ( who ) he sold his car to . In formal writing whom is preferred in sentences like these: the man to whom he sold his car . There are some types of sentence in which who cannot be used: the refugees, many of whom were old and ill, were allowed across the border

Commonly Confused

See who .

Etymology

Origin of whom

First recorded before 900; Middle English; Old English hwām, dative of interrogative pronoun hwā who

Example Sentences

Today, Grede is best known as a serial entrepreneur whom “Forbes” named one of “America’s Richest Self-Made Women” in 2025.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 13, 2026

Russo is a good guy, yes, and one for whom we root, but in his effort to protect his daughter, he plumbs seemingly bottomless depths of humiliation.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 12, 2026

During his university years, he befriended Gergely Gulyas -- Orban's current chief of staff -- and met Judit Varga, whom he married in 2006 and who later became justice minister under Orban.

From Barron's • Apr. 12, 2026

His comments echoed the company’s argument in court that it created a path to homeownership for thousands of lower-income consumers whom risk-averse banks reject.

From Salon • Apr. 12, 2026

I wondered if I was the only one to whom his mannerisms seemed somehow familiar, as if he’d studied them on someone else, like Shatta Wale or Burna Boy.

From "Flying Through Water" by Mamle Wolo