who / whom
Who is the SUBJECT. The subject performs the action:
Who
ate the last piece of pizza?
who = subject
ate = verb
The students
who
failed the test will need extra help.
the students / who = subject
failed = verb
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Whom is the OBJECT. The object receives the action:
Bob gave the money to
whom
?
Bob = subject
gave = verb
money = direct object
whom = indirect object
Whom is always used after a PREPOSITION.
My three brothers, one of whom is a doctor, live in New York.
(of = preposition)
With whom did you go to the movies?
(with = preposition)
That’s the employee at whom I yelled.
(at = preposition)
I no longer speak to the person from whom I got this gift.
(from = preposition)
BIG EXCEPTION IN SPOKEN ENGLISH!
In spoken English, we often use “who” not “whom,” and end sentences with
prepositions… even when it is technically incorrect:
Who did Bob give the money to?
Who did you go to the movies with?
That’s the employee who I yelled at.
I no longer speak to the person who I got this gift from.
will / would
Use will:
1. to talk about the future
Ex) The bus will leave at 8:30.
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Ex) Elections are next month. I think the president will be re-elected.
2. to make promises and offers – when in statement form (not in question
form):
Ex) Sorry I was late to class today. I’ll be on time tomorrow.
(promise)
Ex) I'll give you a ride home from work. (offer – in statement form)
(offer – in question form): Would you like a ride?
Would is the past tense of will. We use would:
1. to talk about the past
Ex) Elections were held last week. I thought the president would be re-
elected, but he wasn't.
Ex) Yesterday he said he would give me a ride, but he forgot to pick me up
and I had to take the bus.
2. to talk about hypothetical (imaginary) situations
Ex) If I had the money, I'd buy a motorcycle.
Ex) If it was sunny today, I’d go to the beach – but unfortunately it’s raining.
We often use the short form, ‘d.
3. for politeness
Ex) Would you like something to eat?
(offer in the form of a question)
Ex) Would you mind turning down the volume?
(request in the form of a question)
Ex) I’d like a small hot chocolate, please.
(“I’d like” is a more polite way to say “I want”)
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Ex) I’d rather take a taxi, not the bus.
(a polite way to express a preference)
worse / worst
Worse is the comparative (comparing two things). Worst is the superlative
(comparing 3+ things, or comparing one thing with everything).
I thought the second movie was worse than the first one.
(comparing two movies)
That’s the worst movie I’ve ever seen.
(always use “the” before “worst”)
(comparing one movie with ALL the others)
In fast spoken English, it’s often hard to hear the difference between them in
pronunciation.
year-old / years old
When you say the age of someone or something, you can say subject + is + # years
old:
I’m thirty years old.
That boy is fourteen years old.
These houses are 200 years old.
When you want to say the age before the subject, then use #-year-old:
My twenty-year-old sister
A fourteen-year-old boy
The 200-year-old houses
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