I vs. me
Dec 23rd, 2008 | By Jennifer Roach | Category: GrammarThe pronoun “I” is subjective, meaning it is always used as the subject of the sentence or clause. The pronoun “me” is objective; it is used to receive action from the subject or to be the object of a preposition.
|
|
| In this sentence, “I” is the subject. | In this sentence, Tim is the subject. “Me” is the object of the preposition “with.” |
Pronoun case is especially difficult to figure out when you are faced with another noun or pronoun added to it, as in “One Christmas, Santa Claus gave my sister and ___ a weasel.” The easiest way to decipher the correct case is to remove the other noun or pronoun and decide which case is correct. In this sentence, “. . . gave me a weasel” is obviously correct (at least grammatically), so the sentence becomes “One Christmas, Santa Claus gave my sister and me a weasel.”
|
This article was written by Jennifer Roach Jennifer is a fiction writer, blogger, and freelance editor/proofreader. You can follow her on Twitter or on . To see more posts click here |
Yes–thanks for putting this out there! Smoke blows out of my ears every time I hear someone use “I” incorrectly. And it happens SO often! It’s almost as if the only grammar rule people retain from their 5th grade language arts class is that sentences beginning with a noun (say, Santa) and pronoun (say, I) must always read “Santa and I,” and not “Santa and me.” But, somewhere down the line, that “rule” became grossly misinterpreted and misapplied, resulting in the almost universal assumption that “Santa and I” is ALWAYS correct, no matter what. Example? “My mother baked cookies for Santa and I.” Eeeek! The smoke is billowing right now….
I’m glad I’m not the only one with a smoking ears problem! You’re right; grammar teachers made everyone scared of the word “me,” as if it’s always incorrect. Thanks for the comment!