Dave's ESL Cafe's Student Discussion Forums

[whatdaheck]

Hi!
Which of the following are correct?
Whom are you waiting for?
Or
Who are you waiting for?

None of us has the book.
Or
None of us have the book.
Thanks,
Maham

[CP]

1. "Whom" is correct, although in conversation many people would use "who." It is "whom" because "whom" is the objective case. Just as you would say, "Are you waiting for him [not he]?", you would say, "Whom are you waiting for?" (Substituting "him" or "he" in the sentence, maybe rearranging it a little, always works to figure out whether "whom" or "who" is the right choice.)

2. The subject of the sentence is "None," not "us," and "none" is singular. It means "not one / not any / no one." So the correct sentence is "None of us has the book." Again, in conversation, a lot of people would say "have," but it is always right to use the correct grammar.
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You live a new life for every new language you speak. -Czech proverb

[Lorikeet]

Everything CP says is true. However, I'd say that although "Whom are you waiting for?" is correct, and would be the correct answer on a test, in American English the majority of people would say, "Who are you waiting for?" I include myself in that group, although I am well educated. I rarely use "whom" in a question of that kind. I would tend to use it when it appears right after a preposition, for example, "To whom?" or "By whom?"

[CP]

All true, Lorikeet.

While we are on the topic:

1. Years ago, a cartoon in the New Yorker depicted a secretary taking dictation from the boss. She says to him, "Who should I send this letter toom?"

2. Then there was Calvin Trillin, a writer born in 1935, who said, "As far as I'm concerned, 'whom' is a word that was invented to make everyone sound like a butler."

Call me Jeeves, but I can't help saying "whom" when it is needed. What I hate is hearing it where it doesn't belong. "The people whom are most likely to vote in this election . . . ." Yikes.
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You live a new life for every new language you speak. -Czech proverb