English Grammar Demystified - A Self Teaching Guide

He hit the opponent on the head. (He is the subject and hit is the verb.)

He hit him on the head. (He is the subject, hit is the verb, and him is the object

who received the hit.)

As you can see in the following example, function is extremely important in
choosing the correct pronoun.

Him hit he. (An object pronoun, him, cannot be used as a subject, and a

subject pronoun, he, cannot be used as the object.)

You will have an opportunity to study the complete pronoun list and their func-
tions later in the chapter. For now, you just need to remember that I,he, and she are
subject pronouns and that me,her, and him are object pronouns.

COMMON ERRORS

One of the most persistent errors in English is the use of an object pronoun as the subject

or a subject pronoun as the object:

Incorrect: The gift was for Michael and I.

Correct: The gift was for Michael and me.

Incorrect: Me and him are going to the movies.

Correct:He and I are going to the movies.

Written Practice 2-1

Write your correction for each sentence on the lines provided.

1. Him and me share a job.


2. Tim and him share a job.


3. This pizza is for Betsy and I.


4. The argument is between Marcus and I.


5. Tim and me are happy about the new arrangement.

CHAPTER 2 Introduction to the Parts of Speech^27