me/I

This topic has expert replies
User avatar
Legendary Member
Posts: 1325
Joined: Sun Nov 01, 2009 6:24 am
Thanked: 105 times
Followed by:14 members

me/I

by vikram4689 » Mon Mar 05, 2012 9:43 am
Which one is correct (me/I)
No one except me/I was present for the meeting

What is the change in meaning if BUT is used in place of EXCEPT
No one but me/I was present for the meeting
Premise: If you like my post
Conclusion : Press the Thanks Button ;)
Source: — Sentence Correction |

User avatar
Master | Next Rank: 500 Posts
Posts: 359
Joined: Wed Mar 11, 2009 4:37 am
Location: Kolkata, India
Thanked: 50 times
Followed by:2 members

by Abhishek009 » Mon Mar 05, 2012 10:18 am
vikram4689 wrote:Which one is correct (me/I)
No one except me/I was present for the meeting

What is the change in meaning if BUT is used in place of EXCEPT
No one but me/I was present for the meeting
No one except I was present for the meeting..

Except is used to exclude something after stating a generalization.
Abhishek

User avatar
Legendary Member
Posts: 1325
Joined: Sun Nov 01, 2009 6:24 am
Thanked: 105 times
Followed by:14 members

by vikram4689 » Mon Mar 05, 2012 12:10 pm
Abhishek009 wrote:No one except I was present for the meeting..
Even i think so as SUBJECT = "No one except I"
BUT i could not find any sentence using "I" on google whereas there were many using "me"
Premise: If you like my post
Conclusion : Press the Thanks Button ;)

User avatar
GMAT Instructor
Posts: 88
Joined: Tue Jan 17, 2012 5:01 pm
Thanked: 54 times
Followed by:37 members

by chris@magoosh » Mon Mar 05, 2012 5:03 pm
Hey guys, just thought I'd quickly dispel any misconceptions :).

Except is a preposition. Whenever a pronoun is the object of the preposition, as is the case here (no one except me was present) you must always use the object case.

Nobody except for him and her can attest to the defendant's whereabouts.

Between you and me, I don't trust him.


If the conjunction 'but' is used instead of the preposition 'except', then the pronoun no longer functions as the object of the preposition. In this case we would want to use the subject case 'I.'

Hope that helps :).

User avatar
Master | Next Rank: 500 Posts
Posts: 172
Joined: Wed Jul 09, 2008 3:35 am
Thanked: 3 times
Followed by:1 members
GMAT Score:610

by karthikgmat » Mon Mar 05, 2012 6:48 pm
Yes as Chris said.. In every sentence , you should go with sujbect/object base. Here 'me' is apt which is an object.

User avatar
Legendary Member
Posts: 1325
Joined: Sun Nov 01, 2009 6:24 am
Thanked: 105 times
Followed by:14 members

by vikram4689 » Mon Mar 05, 2012 7:37 pm
chris@magoosh wrote: Except is a preposition. Whenever a pronoun is the object of the preposition, as is the case here (no one except me was present) you must always use the object case.

Nobody except for him and her can attest to the defendant's whereabouts.

Between you and me, I don't trust him.


If the conjunction 'but' is used instead of the preposition 'except', then the pronoun no longer functions as the object of the preposition. In this case we would want to use the subject case 'I.'
Chris, i did not get logic behind this.

Also isn't "No one except I" is SUBJECT, i considered sentence "I was present for meeting" where I is SUBJECT and when we use "No one except I" we just modified the SUBJECT ?
Premise: If you like my post
Conclusion : Press the Thanks Button ;)

User avatar
Legendary Member
Posts: 1665
Joined: Thu Nov 03, 2011 7:04 pm
Thanked: 165 times
Followed by:70 members

by karthikpandian19 » Mon Mar 05, 2012 11:48 pm
Vikram,
You can answer these questions rightly on your own, with going thru the following article:

"""""When to use "I" and when to use "me"

Which of the sentences below is correct and why?


Jill took Justin and I to the shop.
Jill took Justin and me to the shop.

Answer
This is a part of a bigger question that troubles both learners and native speakers of English: when to use I and when to use me.

The difference between I and me

Both I and me are 1st person singular pronouns, which means that they are used by one person to refer to himself or herself. I is the subject pronoun, used for the one "doing" the verb, as in these examples:

I am studying for a Russian test. (I is the subject of am studying.)
I can speak Russian, but I can't read it very well. (I is the subject of can speak and can't read.)

Me is the object pronoun, used as the object (or receiver) of the action of the verb, as in these examples:

My math teacher encouraged me to come for extra help after school. (Me is the object of encouraged.)
She asked me to bring my homework. (Me is the object of asked.)

The confusing part

What gets confusing for many people is which form to use when there are two subjects or objects linked with and, as in these examples:

a. Jenny and me/I (?) joined the chess club.

b. Jill took Justin and me/I (?) to the shop.

In sentence a), Jenny and me/I are the subjects of the verb joined. Therefore, the subject pronoun, I, is considered correct. You will certainly hear native speakers say, "Jenny and me," and it may be acceptable in spoken English, but most traditional grammarians and English teachers will disapprove. Don't use it in writing.


The opposite is true for sentence b), which is the original example from above. Justin and me/I are the objects of took. Therefore me is considered correct by most grammarians and teachers, although you will hear people say, "Justin and I." Again, don't use it in writing.

Hint
If you're having trouble deciding which one to use in a particular sentence, here's a hint: Take out the other person, and it should be clearer. You are not likely to be tempted to say, "Me joined the chess club," or "Jill took I to the shop."

I hope this helps. """"""
vikram4689 wrote:Which one is correct (me/I)
No one except me/I was present for the meeting

What is the change in meaning if BUT is used in place of EXCEPT
No one but me/I was present for the meeting

User avatar
Legendary Member
Posts: 1325
Joined: Sun Nov 01, 2009 6:24 am
Thanked: 105 times
Followed by:14 members

by vikram4689 » Tue Mar 06, 2012 10:55 am
karthik,
I think you did not read my responses, i wrote "No one except I" is SUBJECT and i.e. I think "I" is appropriate. Similar to ex. in your article "Jenny and me/I (?) joined the chess club".

What do you think is correct in "No one except me/I was present for the meeting"
Premise: If you like my post
Conclusion : Press the Thanks Button ;)

User avatar
Legendary Member
Posts: 1325
Joined: Sun Nov 01, 2009 6:24 am
Thanked: 105 times
Followed by:14 members

by vikram4689 » Tue Mar 06, 2012 11:00 am
Before mentioning "As Chris said.." Read his response carefully, he talked about some peculiar difference b/w preposition and conjunction
karthikgmat wrote:Yes as Chris said.. In every sentence , you should go with sujbect/object base. Here 'me' is apt which is an object.
Premise: If you like my post
Conclusion : Press the Thanks Button ;)

User avatar
Legendary Member
Posts: 1665
Joined: Thu Nov 03, 2011 7:04 pm
Thanked: 165 times
Followed by:70 members

by karthikpandian19 » Tue Mar 06, 2012 5:10 pm
Ok, from the inference, the correct sentence is

No one except me was present for the meeting (as "me" is the object of the preposition)

No one but I was present for the meeting (as "but" is a conjunction, there are 2 sentences. So here it is the subject)

Is this explanation Ok?
vikram4689 wrote:karthik,
I think you did not read my responses, i wrote "No one except I" is SUBJECT and i.e. I think "I" is appropriate. Similar to ex. in your article "Jenny and me/I (?) joined the chess club".

What do you think is correct in "No one except me/I was present for the meeting"

User avatar
Legendary Member
Posts: 1325
Joined: Sun Nov 01, 2009 6:24 am
Thanked: 105 times
Followed by:14 members

by vikram4689 » Wed Mar 07, 2012 1:33 am
Aren't we looking for subject/object w.r.t whole sentence. What is the SUBJECT of this sentence
karthikpandian19 wrote: No one except me was present for the meeting (as "me" is the object of the preposition)
Can you share which are the 2 sentences in below line.
No one but I was present for the meeting (as "but" is a conjunction, there are 2 sentences. So here it is the subject)
Premise: If you like my post
Conclusion : Press the Thanks Button ;)

User avatar
Legendary Member
Posts: 1665
Joined: Thu Nov 03, 2011 7:04 pm
Thanked: 165 times
Followed by:70 members

by karthikpandian19 » Thu Mar 08, 2012 9:46 pm
1. No one except me was present for the meeting (as "me" is the object of the preposition)

The above sentence with "except me" is the object of the preposition. When u consider for the whole sentence the subject is only "No one" and also you can rewrite this sentence as "No one was present except me for the meeting"

2. No one but I was present for the meeting (as "but" is a conjunction, there are 2 sentences. So here it is the subject)

The above is a 2 sentence linked with a conjunction "but"
The 2 sentences are " No one was present in the meeting" "But i was present in the meeting"
Try the second sentence with "me" it will be awkward sentence

i hope this one is clear with this explanation....


vikram4689 wrote:Aren't we looking for subject/object w.r.t whole sentence. What is the SUBJECT of this sentence
karthikpandian19 wrote: No one except me was present for the meeting (as "me" is the object of the preposition)
Can you share which are the 2 sentences in below line.
No one but I was present for the meeting (as "but" is a conjunction, there are 2 sentences. So here it is the subject)

User avatar
Legendary Member
Posts: 1665
Joined: Thu Nov 03, 2011 7:04 pm
Thanked: 165 times
Followed by:70 members

by karthikpandian19 » Thu Mar 08, 2012 9:47 pm
If these doesn't clear your doubts, then probably an expert need to dive in to clear the doubt.

• Page 1 of 1