Pronoun case (subjective vs. objective)
SAT glossary · Reading & Writing
Definition
I/he/she/we/they/who perform the verb; me/him/her/us/them/whom receive the action or follow a preposition (to, for, between, with, among). The case is set by the pronoun's job inside its own clause, not by what sits before it — 'the committee selected whom' survives even with a noun placed right before the blank to suggest otherwise.
Pronoun case (subjective vs. objective) in plain English
Pronouns change form depending on whether they're DOING the action (subjective case: I, he, she, we, they, who) or RECEIVING the action, or following a preposition like to/for/between/with/among (objective case: me, him, her, us, them, whom). The critical thing to understand is that the correct case depends ENTIRELY on what job the pronoun is doing inside its OWN clause — not on whatever noun happens to be sitting physically closest to it in the sentence. So a sentence like 'the committee selected whom' can still be correct even with a noun placed right before the blank trying to trick you into thinking a different pronoun form is needed.
Also called: subjective vs. objective
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