How to Know When to Use Subject or Object Pronouns

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If you don't know whether to use “I” or “me,” it's easy to learn which pronoun when you follow a few simple tips.

Step 1: Know the subject and object pronouns
Know your subject and object pronouns. In English, "I," "you," "he," "she," "it," "we," and "they" are subject pronouns. "Me," "you," "him," "her," "it," "us," and "them" are object pronouns.

Step 2: Use subject pronouns as the subject of a sentence
Use subject pronouns to replace the noun that is the subject of the sentence -- the person or thing that is doing something.

Step 3: Use subject pronouns after a state-of-being verb
Replace nouns with subject pronouns when they follow a verb that conveys a state of being, like "were" or "am."

Tip
For example, to use a subject pronoun to replace the noun "Pam" in the sentence, "My best friend is Pam," The grammatically correct sentence is, "My best friend is she."

Step 4: Use object pronouns as the object of a sentence
Use object pronouns to replace the noun that is the object of the sentence -- the person or thing to whom or which something is being done.

Step 5: Use object pronouns in a prepositional phrase
Replace nouns with object pronouns when they are the objects of a prepositional phrase -- a phrase starting with a preposition like "to" or "after" -- and are telling where or when something is happening.

Tip
For example, to use an object pronoun to replace the noun "Jim" in the sentence, "I gave a card to Jim," the grammatically correct sentence is, "I gave a card to him."

Step 6: Simplify the sentence
Simplify the sentence by mentally eliminating subjects or objects other than your pronoun and dropping extra phrases.

Tip
Reduce the sentence "Mike, Andy, and I went to the store" by dropping Mike and Andy. "I went to the store" is grammatically correct. "Me went to the store" is not.

Step 7: See if your pronoun sounds right
Read the simplified sentence using your chosen pronoun and see if it sounds right. With practice, you won't have to give much thought to finding the right word -- it will come naturally.

Did You Know?
In 1762, Robert Lowth published one of the first grammar textbooks in English. He wanted to standardize the way the language was written and spoken.

[gabrielaroblesmengoa]

omg, it's confusing even to native speakers! WAY TOO FAST!

[hkeenan]

I was looking for something to help my students.... but this is far too fast. Such a pity.

[TheDarkerAges]

Im British and English is my native language... Um wtf this is waay too fast

[snager]

*turned into gibberish VERY quickly*

/@_@ this is why i only got a B in Spanish..

[ServingEnglish]

Waaaay to fast. I'm not sure how much use this will be to native speakers, but I know I can't use this with my ESL students. S l o w D o w n!

[freedubro]

agreed, I wanted to use a video, but this will not be clear fot ss.

[TraxAndrew]

Because Mexicans want to know engl. As well as me lol :D

[jamjamrox]

That made no sense to me but I was bored... o_0

[MrPorschecrm]

subject and object nouns are so annoying

[bee]

Why are they dressed like Mexicans??

Very subtle Howcast, very subtle...