me
1 Americanpronoun
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the objective case of I, used as a direct or indirect object.
They asked me to the party. Give me your hand.
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Informal. (used instead of the pronoun I in the predicate after the verbto be ).
It's me.
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Informal. (used instead of the pronoun my before a gerund).
Did you hear about me getting promoted?
adjective
abbreviation
abbreviation
abbreviation
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(often lowercase) managing editor.
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Master of Education.
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Master of Engineering.
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Mechanical Engineer.
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Methodist Episcopal.
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Mining Engineer.
abbreviation
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Maine
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Marine Engineer
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Mechanical Engineer
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Methodist Episcopal
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Mining Engineer
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Middle English
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(in titles) Most Excellent
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myalgic encephalopathy
pronoun
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refers to the speaker or writer
that shocks me
he gave me the glass
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(when used an an indirect object) a dialect word for myself
I want to get me a car
noun
symbol
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noun
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Grammar
A traditional rule governing the case of personal pronouns after forms of the verb to be is that the nominative or subjective form ( I; she; he; we; they ) must be chosen. Some 400 years ago, owing to the feeling that the postverb position in a sentence is object rather than subject territory, me and other objective pronouns ( him; her; us; them ) began to replace the subjective forms after be, so that It is I became It is me. Today such constructions— It's me. That's him. It must be them. —are almost universal in speech, the context in which they usually occur. In formal speech or edited writing, the subjective forms are used: It was I who first noticed the problem. My brother was the one who called our attention to the problem, but it wasn't he who solved it. It had been she at the window, not her husband. Me and other objective forms have also replaced the subjective forms in speech in constructions like Me neither; Not us; Who, them? and in comparisons after as or than: She's no faster than him at getting the answers. When the pronoun is the subject of a verb that is expressed, the nominative forms are used: Neither did I. She's no faster than he is at getting the answers. See also than. When a verb form ending in -ing functions as a noun, it is traditionally called a gerund: Walking is good exercise. She enjoys reading biographies. Usage guides have long insisted that gerunds, being nouns, must be preceded by the possessive form of the pronouns or nouns ( my; your; her; his; its; our; their; child's; author's ) rather than by the objective forms ( me; you; him; her; it; us; them ): The landlord objected to my (not me ) having guests late at night. Several readers were delighted at the author's (not author ) taking a stand on the issue. In standard practice, however, both objective and possessive forms appear before gerunds. Possessives are more common in formal edited writing, but the occurrence of objective forms is increasing; in informal writing and speech objective forms are more common: Many objections have been raised to the government (or government's ) allowing lumbering in national parks. “Does anyone object to me (or my ) reading this report aloud?” the moderator asked.
Etymology
Origin of me
First recorded before 900; Middle English me, Old English mē (dative and accusative singular); cognate with Dutch mij, Old High German mir; akin to Greek emé, Irish mé “I, me,” Latin mē, Russian menjá
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
“The idea of slowing down is unacceptable to me. I’d rather walk away than be a shadow of my former self.”
From Los Angeles Times
“That comeback, to me, represents potential revival or pickup in this real economy,” Carlson said.
Eventually, Dr. Daniels approached him and said, “Excuse me, can you turn your music off?”
"She said no and asked me to sit down."
From BBC
"They saw me walking back, they were shouting 'Alfie' and it was really cute."
From BBC
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.