When to Use Who Vs Whom: Essential Who or Whom Examples

In grammar, both who and whom are relative pronouns. Who and whom can be used to introduce a relative clause. Both who and whom are used to refer to people. Is there any difference between who and whom?

In this post, you’ll learn when to use who vs whom. You’ll also have some good ‘who or whom examples’.

When to Use Who or Whom (When to use who vs whom )

Who Examples

• That is the student who won the contest yesterday.
• A doctor is a person who treats patients.
• This is the person who designed online courses for the university.

Who Vs Whom Examples

When to use who

We use who as a subject of the verb of the relative clause. Notice, in the examples above, who comes before a verb (won, treats, designed, …). Who cannot be omitted.

• That is the student won the contest yesterday. (incorrect)
• A doctor is a person treats patients. (incorrect)
• This is the person designed online courses for the university. (incorrect)

Who can be replaced by that.

• She is the student that won the contest yesterday. (correct)
• A doctor is a person that treats patients. (correct)
• He is the professor that designed online courses for the university. (correct)

Whom Examples

• He is the student whom I competed with in yesterday’s contest.
• She is the woman whom I met at my cousin’s party.
• He is the minister whom we met at the conference.
• He is the criminal whom the police arrested last night.

When to use whom (how to use whom)

We use whom as an object of the verb of the relative clause. Whom can be omitted.

• He is the student I competed with in a contest.
• She is the woman I met at my cousin’s party.
• He is the minister we met at the conference.
• He is the criminal the police arrested last night.

Whom can be replaced by who or that.

Who or whom?

Who and Whom in a Sentence

• He is the student whom/who/that I competed with in a contest.
• She is the woman whom/who/that I met at my cousin’s party.
• He is the minister whom/who/that we met at the conference.
• He is the criminal whom/who/that the police arrested last night.

Who and whom can be replaced by that

Who I Respect or Whom I respect?

You can say both ‘who I respect’ and ‘whom I respect’. For example, you can say:

He is the man who I respect much or he is the man whom I respect much or he is the man I respect much.

Who I Work with or Whom I Work with?

Learn more about relative pronouns here.

When to use who vs whom

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