Relative Pronouns: Who, Whom & Whose

 In this article, we will talk about Relative Pronouns. Relative means related. Something that relates to the object or subject. Specifically, there are three commonly used Relative Pronouns. These are:

• Who
• Whom
• Whose

Amongst these, “Who” and “Whom” tend to be more confusing. ‘Whose’ is relatively easy to understand. 

Who/Whom 

The difference between Who and Whom is:

1. “Who” is for “he/she” statements. 

Statements where you can answer “he did it”, or “she is the one”, then you use “Who”. 

For example: “Who did it?”

                         “He did it.”

2. “Whom” is for “him/her” statements. 

For example: “Whom were you talking to?”

                        “I was talking to him.”

Let’s understand this through some examples:

Statement:

He is at the door 

Question:

Who is at the door? (Not “him” at the door)

Statement:

I sent that letter to her.

Question:

To whom did you send that letter to? (Not sent to “she”.)

Question 1:

Halt, __________ goes there?

1. who
2. whom 
3. whose
4. Hoo

Solution:

1) who.

Explanation:

Halt is to stop someone. 

Question 2:

To __________ it may concern…

1. who
2. whom
3. whose
4. hoot 

Solution: 

2) whom.

Explanation:

The statement is very common in letters. 

Question 3:

That man, __________ scaled the building without any equipment, is an extreme climber. 

1. who
2. whom
3. whose
4. Hood

Solution: 

1) who

Question 4:

I must ask, __________ do you believe?

1. who
2. whom
3. whose
4. Hood

Solution: 

2) whom.

Explanation:

We use ‘whom’ because the answer would end with  “him or her”. 

Question 5:

I do not know with __________ I will go to the party.

1. who 
2. whom
3. whose 
4. Hood

Solution:

2) whom.

Explanation:

This is because you would answer as “I am going with him/her”. 

Question 6:

Excuse me, __________ should I talk to about enrolling as an orbital drop shock trooper?

1. who 
2. whom
3. whose
4. houdini

Solution:

2) whom.

Explanation:

This is because you will answer it as “I should talk to him/ her.” 

Whose

“Whose” asks for the owner of an object. 

It is really easy, isn’t it? 

So let’s mix up the questions to see if you’ve understood the concept.

Question 1:

Hey, __________ bag is this? Get it out of the way, please. 

1. who
2. whom
3. whose
4. halloumi 

Solution:

3) whose. 

Question 2:

I don’t know __________ laptop this is, but if you know __________ the owner is then please tell them to come collect it. 

1. Whose…whom
2. Whose…who
3. Whom…whom
4. Whom…who

Solution: 

2) whose…who.

Explanation:

Someone owns the laptop so it should be “whose”. 
“Who” is used as it would be answered as “she/he is the owner.” 

Question 3:

The live stream was __________ by a connectivity issue. 

1. heightened 
2. Truncated
3. Abbreviated
4. Blasphemed

Solution:

2) truncated.

Explanation:

Truncated means ‘when something is cut short’. The live stream was cut short by a connectivity issue. 

Question 4:

Throughout the exam, Thomas kept taking __________ glances at his friend’s paper, hoping to glean some answers. 

1. manic
2. hidden
3. stealth
4. surreptitious

Solution:

4) surreptitious.

Explanation:

When something is done surreptitiously, it is done secretly. It could be an action like glancing. 

Question 5:

The presence of a thirteenth raven along the castle’s ramparts was taken as a/an __________ sign. 

1. omnibus
2. ominous
3. monotonous
4. isolated 

Solution:

2) ominous

Dictionary Time 

Rampart: The defensive wall of a castle or city. Castles or cities have many walls. The outermost wall is the defensive wall that prevents people from coming in. Ramparts usually have walkways for guards to patrol. 

Omnibus: A collection of several books previously published separately. 

Example: 

Consider an author who published books titled “The Light”, “The Dark”, and “The Reckoning” in the years 2021, 2022, and 2023 respectively.

In a subsequent year, say 2025, the publisher decides to create a compilation of all the above three books, called “The Tale of Light”. This compilation will be called an omnibus.

Question 1:

__________ what you suggested could have worked, but the fact remains that it did not. 

1. However
2. Regardless 
3. Granted 
4. However

Solution:

3) Granted

Explanation:

Granted means a “yes”. 

Question 2:

The girls __________ lightly around the sleeping guard, cautious not to wake him up. 

1. tread
2. galloped
3. dashed
4. thread

Solution:

1) tread.

Explanation:

To tread is to walk or move lightly. 

Conclusion 

In this article, we studied relative pronouns. Relative means related. Something that relates to the object or subject. There are three relative pronouns:

• “Who”:
  • If you can reply with “he/her”.

Example: “Who woke up?”

        “He woke up”

• “Whom”:
  • If you can reply with “him/her”.

Example: “Whom did you see?” 

        “I saw him” 

• "Whose"

The questions and examples are designed as per the syllabus of the primary 5 English grade. Go through the article again whenever you want to refresh your concepts related to the relative pronouns.