Showing results for "whom"

• objective of who.

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

See Examples For:

whom

“Americans are hearing conflicting messages about vaccines right now, and it’s understandable that people are asking whom they should trust,” Dr. Bruce Gellin of the Vaccine Integrity Project told NPR.

From Salon ● Sep. 2, 2026

John Overdeck said his primary concern with regard to the firm was maintaining voting parity with his co-founder David Siegel, with whom he is locked in a bitter feud.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 2, 2026

He is also expected to meet King Charles III, with whom Macron also has a strong personal relationship.

From Barron's ● Sep. 2, 2026

He will be out of office in January after losing the June primary to Joanna Francescut, a longtime assistant registrar whom he had fired.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 1, 2026

Mr. Arter, the principal, taught fifth through seventh in the other, educating Horace and Margaret, whom I called Sister.

From "Reaching for the Moon" by Katherine Johnson