Which relative pronoun is typically used as the object of a clause?

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Multiple Choice

Which relative pronoun is typically used as the object of a clause?

Relative pronouns introduce information that describes a noun in the main clause, and they can act as the subject or the object inside that description. When the pronoun is the one receiving the action in the relative clause, you use the object form. For people, that form is whom. For example, The student whom the teacher praised earned top marks shows whom is the object of praised. If we use a preposition, we can say The student to whom the teacher spoke was quiet, with whom also serving as the object of the preposition. In everyday speech, who is often used in place of whom, but in formal writing whom is the correct choice when the pronoun is the object.

Relative pronouns introduce information that describes a noun in the main clause, and they can act as the subject or the object inside that description. When the pronoun is the one receiving the action in the relative clause, you use the object form. For people, that form is whom. For example, The student whom the teacher praised earned top marks shows whom is the object of praised. If we use a preposition, we can say The student to whom the teacher spoke was quiet, with whom also serving as the object of the preposition. In everyday speech, who is often used in place of whom, but in formal writing whom is the correct choice when the pronoun is the object.

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