whom

[hoom]

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?

whom

/ 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

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

Confusables Note

See who .

Word History and Origins

Origin of whom¹

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

Word History and Origins

Origin of whom¹

Old English hwām, dative of hwā _who

Example Sentences

Musalem took a somewhat tougher tone on Friday than many of his colleagues, some of whom have already said they would support an additional rate cut in December this year.

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His wife, whom Mr. Murray plainly reveres, is a Quaker who doesn’t care all that much about the factual questions that bother him in this book.

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Lorincz, who is white, claimed that the children — most of whom are Black and were under 12 — were a threat, citing one of the nation’s many “Stand Your Ground” laws, which allow individuals to use deadly force to protect themselves if they feel their life is in danger.

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I have two adult children and he has one from whom he had been estranged.

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During his early years as leader, Xi axed dozens of generals and replaced them with officers whom he considered to be more professional and politically reliable.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal