Slips of Speech : a Helpful Book for Everyone Who Aspires to Correct the Everyday Errors of Speaking eBook

This eBook from the Gutenberg Project consists of approximately 164 pages of information about Slips of Speech .

Slips of Speech : a Helpful Book for Everyone Who Aspires to Correct the Everyday Errors of Speaking eBook

This eBook from the Gutenberg Project consists of approximately 164 pages of information about Slips of Speech .

“Between you and I, that picture is very faulty.”  The pronouns you and I depend upon the preposition between.  The pronoun I should therefore be in the objective case, and the sentence should be, “Between you and me, that picture is very faulty.”

“The president of the meeting appointed you and I upon the committee.”  As both pronouns are objects of the transitive verb appointed, both should be in the objective case.  You having the same form in the objective as in the nominative is, therefore, correct, but I should be changed to me.

“The teacher selected he and I to represent the class.”  The pronouns are the objects of the verb selected, and should be changed to him and me.  The infinitive to represent, like other infinitives, can have no subject, and, therefore, does not control the case of the pronouns.

Interrogatives

When a question is asked, the subject is usually placed after the verb, or between the auxiliary and
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the verb; as, “Did you go to town?” “Will he sail to-day?” “Has your uncle arrived?” “Hearest thou thy mother’s call?”

The object or attribute of the verb, when a pronoun, is often used to introduce the sentence.  “Who should I see coming toward me but my old friend?” Who should be whom, for it is the object, and not the subject, of the verb should see.

“Whom do you think that tall gentleman is?” Whom should be who, as it is the attribute of the verb is.

“Who do you take me for?” Being the object of the preposition for, who should be whom.

After “To be”

“I knew it was him” is incorrect, because the word which forms the pronoun attribute of the verb was must be in the nominative case.  But the infinitive of the neuter verb requires the objective case.  Therefore we must say, “I knew it to be him,” not “I knew it to be he.”  The latter faulty form is very frequently employed.

“Who did you suppose it to be?” Incorrect.  Say, “whom.”

“Whom did you suppose it was?” Incorrect.  Say, “who.”
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After the Imperative

The imperative mood requires the objective case after it.  “Let you and I try it.”  It should be, “Let you and me try it.”

“Let he who made thee answer that.”—­ Byron.  He should have said, “Let him who made thee answer that.”

“Let him be whom, he may.”  Him is the objective after the imperative let, and is correct.  Whom should be who, as pronoun attribute of the verb may be.  “Who he may be, I cannot tell,” is correct.  “Who he may be, let him be,” is also correct.  By transposing, and by omitting be, we have “Let him be who he may.”

“Let the sea roar, and the fullness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein.”  When, as in this case, the verb is widely separated from its object, we need to give particular care to the case of the pronoun which constitutes the object.  They should be them.

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Slips of Speech : a Helpful Book for Everyone Who Aspires to Correct the Everyday Errors of Speaking from Project Gutenberg. Public domain.