Works For Me: I vs. Me

Yesterday I wrote about containerizing Pop Tarts, and today I'm writing about proper grammar.  I'm not sure when I became the scary, nerdy librarian of the blogosphere, but evidently I have passed the point of no return.

Y'all know how I love good grammar, and there's a simple tip to avoid a common grammar pratfall (I have to use this one all the time). 

When you're writing or speaking about yourself and another person, it's easy to mix up the personal pronouns.  For example, "Janie and I" or "Janie and me".  Which one do you use?

Just take out the "Janie and", leaving you with only the personal pronoun.  The one that sounds the most natural is almost always the right one.  Here's an example:

Janie and me found a great bargain yesterday.

Take out "Janie and".  You're left with "me found a great bargain yesterday."  Unless you are a caveman (with impressive shopping skills), you know that sounds awkward.  So it should read

Janie and I found a great bargain yesterday.

Let's move it to the end of the sentence:

That fabulous sale was meant for Janie and I.

Again, take out "Janie and."   Would you say "That fabulous sale was meant for I"?  Of course not.  So the sentence should read

That fabulous sale was meant for Janie and me.

It's a quick little short-cut that works for me, all the time.  And it probably already works for many of you as well (really, I do not mean to insult the intelligence of my fellow grammar lovers--I know there are many of you, and I adore you to the very core of my conjunctive participle). 

Have a WFMW tip you'd like to share with the blogosphere?  Leave your link below.  Remember to look through the guidelines, especially if this is your first time to participate.  As always, thanks for playing along!

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Comments

[Overwhelmed With Joy!]

I know this tip and use it often! I'm not sure when I learned it but it sure works.

Thanks for the reminder. :)

[ellen b]

Thanks Shannon. Grammar has never been my strong suit...

[Carol @ I Throw Like A Girl]

As an English major, I really appreciate this!

[Christy]

Yep. I do that ALL the time. My husband laughs at me...but it works!

[Sarah (Real Life)]

Brilliant! I am a grammar enthusiast as well!

[Ronnica]

I do that a lot as well. It certainly helps!

[Teble]

Shannon, I just taught my seven year old that trick last weekend. I'm kind of a grammar nerd myself and I'm doing my part to raise the next generation of geeks.

[MamaGeek]

Thanks for the tip, but personally, I'm still giggling at your pop tart organization. Now THAT's just all sorts of funny. :)

[Vickie@PursuingSimplicity]

Thanks Shannon. Grammar was never my strong suit. It has been so long since I was in school it is helpful to be reminded of these things.

[Karen @ Simply A Musing Blog]

Loved the pop tarts in the bin, personally. It's totally something I would do. :)

Me wish me would have known that handy grammar rule earlier this year when me was trying to teach the proper use for Katie and I. :)

[Ornery's Wife]

That particular tip is one I knew, but could you tell me when to use affect and when to use effect? Or, lay and lie? I am so confused about those! I appreciate reading proper grammar, but sometimes I am in such a hurry that I forget the rule, and am too lazy or rushed to look it up.

Thanks for hosting this each week. I learn a lot of things, and it keeps me on my toes thinking of things to write about!
TM

[Dawn]

Good trick! I will have to remember that one. I know another that helps me. The difference between there and their. Most people probably have the difference memorized now, but when I was in school I mixed them up. I just remembered that the one with an "i" in it had to do with people, b/c I use the letter "i" to describe a person, namely, myself. It may sound strange, but it worked for me! ;-D

[Angie]

I was just giving my husband this tip a few weeks ago! :) It's a very handy little trick to know.

[Beth @ The Natural Mommy]

Oh. My. Goodness - THANK YOU.

(Not that I needed this tip.)

(I actually already wrote a post about this ages ago.)

(But as I do not have the readership you do, hopefully your message will reach more people.)

BECAUSE PEOPLE NEED TO KNOW THIS!

[Devildogwife]

I use that one myself and have taught it to my daughter.

[Rhen (yestheyareallmine)]

I use that trick a lot and have taught my children to do the same. I find myself correcting family, friends and even strangers when they use incorrect grammer. Not everyone is all that thankful for it. LOL

[Tina in Thailand]

The grammar oops that drives me crazy is your/you're. I see it wrong all the time! Even on billboards, of course in very large print, shouting out that someone did not check their work.

[Smockity Frocks]

Thank you, Shannon. I've taught this to my kids as well. I also tell them to put others first, as in "Janie and me" not "me and Janie".

[LeeAnn]

I just learned this trick last month- after 38 years of confusion over this very question!

Thanks for sharing it with the rest of us (sometimes) grammatically challenged readers...

[Melanie]

This has always been a pet peeve of mine. I especially hate it when someone is trying soooo hard to sound proper and then they say something like "The pizza arrived for Bob and I."

[Megan]

I wrote it that way CORRECTLY in a story once that got put on the World Mag blog and there were several who left comments on my improper grammar. As if. Now if they had issues with my spelling, I could not complain. This is why I'm married to an editor...

[Daiquiri]

Great tip! I heard this one in high school, and it's one of those things that really stuck with I...I mean me ;) he he

[momrn2]

Our family was just talking about this rule last week. Glad to hear you confirmed it as I vaguely remembered the rule to be!! Thanks for your support! :-)

[PollyS]

I learned this trick in 7th grade and my life has never been the same. As a matter of fact, my husband and I had a heated discussion about the proper use of "I" just yesterday. And guess what? My 7th grade English teacher won! I wish you could broadcast this message on CNN, FoxNews, Yahoo...anyone that could listen. This is my grammatical pet peeve.

[Tamara Cosby]

Thank you for sponsoring this, it is so much fun!

[Marian]

Thank you for making this official. Because if it's declared at RIMD, it must be official for all of the English-speaking world. I had it drilled into me -- in school!-- that "Janie and I" at the end of the sentence was proper. I realized in adulthood that this had to be wrong-- by way of the little test you describe here-- but use it anyway on occasion in the irrational fear that one of my elementary teachers is going to pop out from somewhere and scold me.

And then there's the phrase to use when you answer the phone and someone asks for you. Sometimes I can't stop myself from repeating the same thing I heard my mother use my whole life - " This is she."

[MooBeeMa]

I LOVE WFMW! Thank you Mrs. Dryer for being FUN!

[Mindy from Mindy Said]

I love that tip! I too use it all the time. :-)

[Kansas A]

I'm slightly passed the age of 40 and I'm just learning this trick now?! I even went back to school and graduated when I was 35ish and have never heard of it! Thanks for the great tip :)

[Nikki]

I use this as well. I have not been able to explain it well though to others.

[LammyAnn]

This is a great tip--- my kids figured it out easily with that simple breakdown.
Thanks Shannon, as usual, for hosting a great idea section!

[Naomi]

What a great way of explaining this! Thanks for the tip!

[Nadine]

Yes, that's a super tip. Apostrophes are my bugaboo! Got any tips for those?

[ukrainiac]

Hooray for other grammar nerds! I just mentioned this tip to my husband last week!

[Mom2fur]

This is a wonderful idea. And you go right on teaching grammar! Some people may think it is petty, but not me--I think the little things add up to make a better life for all of us! I can't tell you how many times I've written how much it bugs me when people mix up 'loose' and 'lose'!

[Michelle]

That's a good one. Proper grammar is such a good thing.

[Michelle]

I remember that trick from school. I still use it to this day!

I heart grammar!

[Amy]

As an English instructor, I salute you!

[Jenn]

Thanks! I've always wondered about that.

No really, I have :)

[tas]

I am not a fan of grammer, BUT I have always wondered what was right.....thank you for clearing that up for me.

Honest....it's good to know.

[Jacquelyn@Because I Said So!]

One editor to another: please straighten people out on the "If you'll just send an e-mail to myself..." AAARRRRAAAGGHHHHH!!!! Politicians, newspeople, celebs, EVERYONE says myself when me is perfectly correct.

Love WFMW.

[Briggie]

this is a really great tip - one of these days i'm gonna get my tip listed early - -

[Julie]

I use that rule too! Similarly, WHOM should be used if you would say HIM; WHO should be used if you would say HE.

To WHOM are you speaking?
Are you speaking to HIM?

WHO is going with you?
Is HE going with you?

[saph]

Thanks for the awesome tip! I really have forgotten the rules of grammar. It's sad, I know. Can you give me a lesson on how to properly use the colon and semi-colon?? I'm serious. LOL =)

[Llama Momma]

thanks, Shannon!

[Beth]

Hey, I do that too! Whatever works, right?

[Sarah]

Thank you so much for bringing this to attention! I'm a bit of a grammarian myself and this one drives me bonkers! Thank you! Love your site!

[TracyMichele]

Mom???? Is that you out there pretending to be Shannon!? *giggle*

[Julie Stiles Mills]

arg. I missed putting a few words indicating the topic of my WFMW. sorry. I'll get it right next time! This is a GREAT resource! Thanks!

[Girlymom]

I use the same tip, but it gets confusing because the kids are being told to use Janie and me- when I was in school...(way back when..) we were told to use Janie and I. Thanks for the clear up, I thought maybe I have been doing it wrong all this time.

[Liz Budd]

I cannot believe all the great posts on WFMW! I'm a newbie to your site, and I look forward to learning (and contributing) a little know-how. I love your posts, too. Thanks for making my very slow Tuesday afternoons have a smile.

[ames]

I'm always shocked to hear grown people do that all the time!

[Francesca]

Great tip. I'm going to have to remember it so I can remind my students of this little grammar error! Thanks!

[Celly B]

Oh, as a former English teacher, I love your post today! I am such a grammar geek! I have made my inaugural posting to Works for Me Wednesday, and I hope that somebody finds it helpful or at least interesting.

[Amy]

I try to use proper grammar, but I forget a lot of the rules. So thanks for the tip!

[LaRee]

This is a "trick" I've used forever, definitely worth knowing!

[Cousin DV]

Cool! I thought that "I" should ALWAYS be used but I'm glad to know that there is a time and a place for "me".

[TheAngelForever]

Great tip (use it all the time)! I even taught that to my 6th graders last year.

[Beth]

thanks Shannon! Hopefully I can remember to use this tip, lol.

[Julie]

I feel so validated! I use that tip all the time! I taught it to my husband shortly after we met and he was amazed. He said no one had ever said that to him. I think I got it from one of my teachers, but I don't know which one. Good tip for the masses.

[aimee]

I don't have a link today but I just wrote a blog about this recently, too. It drives me CRAZY!!! :)

http://smilingmama.blogspot.com/2007/12/grammar-pet-peeve-me-vs-i.html

[Shelley Hale]

I do the same thing!!! Hey, whatever works.

[Teddi]

Thanks for the good reminder - have used it often and it's a big pet peeve of mine! Love the pop tart organization of yesterday! I just found your blog and am having lots of fun looking around!

[Kim]

Thanks that really helps.

[Kirstin]

Great tip. I'm not perfect at it, but grammar and spelling are biggies for me too.

[Tickled PInk]

I wish - especially that I am an elementary school teacher now - someone had taught me that strategie before. Better late than never! THANKS!

[Kristy Howard (Homemaker's Cottage)]

My mom taught us the little "I and me trick" growing up and it has helped me out a lot through the years... it really simplifies the "golden grammar" rule, doesn't it??

[jenny]

Thanks for the great tip, Shannon! Grammar isn't my best subject, so this tip will definitely come in handy!

[adrianna]

Here's another grammar nerd checking in. English was not my major, but when I was in grammar school (years and years ago) correct usage was drilled into us and required.

Regarding affect/effect: the first is a verb, the second a noun. E.g. How will this affect your work? Or: What effect will this have on your work?

I also know how to use lie, lay, lain and lay, laid, laid correctly but there's not room to go into that here. It's not difficult to learn. However, I believe that usages are changing and the incorrect may soon be, or already is, considered appropriate. Not that I'm happy with that situation.

[Margaret]

Argh. I always forget to add what my post is about.

Prettifying cardboard boxes for storage/organization.

[Sandi]

I remember learning this tip when I learned the grammar rule in grade school. It always bugs me when people misuse it because it's SO easy to remember this little tip...I'm glad that you shared it with the blogosphere!

[jennielynn]

That has always bothered I,er, me. I get paranoid about dangling participles.

[Babychaser]

That's a great tip! I know I have used that same method of making sure to say something correctly! Now if only there were such an easy way to avoid the right word/ wrong spelling situation I find myself in when I'm typing too fast and not paying enough attention! :) DH catches this all the time! Makes me feel a little uneducated. :)

[pam]

Yes! Yes! Yes!

Thank you from the bottom of my "nerdy librarian" heart.

I am right with you, Shannon, and I am so glad you posted this handy little tutorial on how to use "I" and "me" correctly.

Now I will go find some lunch after Tony and I work out again together. Thanks again!

[Suzof7]

That's an excellent tip! I do that automatically when I write, and see it written incorrectly all over the place, too.

Now for lie/lay, accept/except, etc./etc.

[Fiddledeedee (It Coulda Been Worse)]

I remember this well from English class. Now that I'm actually teaching grammar to my 2nd grader, I'm floored by how much I've forgotten. Also, as a homeschooling mom who blogs, I'm very aware that I may be judged on my grammar. Which is really unfortunate, as I tend to butcher the English language on a daily basis. Sigh.

Learning never does stop. Even at my advanced age. :)

[Jennifer in OR]

Great WFMW! I'm a grammar lover myself - and that is exactly how I get my Is and MEs straight!

[Susan]

Fellow grammar-lover here . . . that's one of my favorite tricks to use, but no one believes me! LOL They still insist on using "Janie and I" for every grammar situation! Ack!

[lisa (lost pezhead)]

Shannon, which WFMW banner is the current one? the clipboard or the blue letters than spell it out?

[Cindy]

This grammar nerd LOVES this post!
Could you do the world a favor and also address the misuse of the apostrophe???

[Audra Marie]

Too funny - I was just teaching my girls this very thing today. I'll have to send them here to read your post. :)

[Melody from ~Pennies In My Pocket~]

So, I FINALLY got around to participating in WWFM for the 1st time and I entered in my main page for my link on Mr. Linky!! Sheesh, I need to follow directions ... here's my direct link:

http://penniesinmypocket.blogspot.com/2008/01/melodys-confession-post-stinky-messy.html

So sorry about that...I promise I'll get it right next time! :)

~melody~

Oh and I am so in love with your organized pop tarts! lol

[GC]

No offense to cavemen of course?

[kelli in the mirror]

Me love this trick.

Next, please address "myself". I think people, especially on reality tv, have decided that it sounds more highbrow or something, or else they don't know when to use I/me, so you get weird things like "Janie and myself are going to the sale".

[Ewokgirl]

This former English teacher thanks you! It drives me nuts when people use the nominative and objective cases of pronouns incorrectly! If a public speaker uses them wrong, I'll stew over it for quite a while, then I miss half the speech. Oops.

And don't get me started on praise songs. "As the Deer Pants" puts me over the grammatical edge with the incorrect usage of thee and thou. Thankfully, the Lord seems to have worked it out with our music minister so that I'm never up front on the praise team on the rare Sundays that we sing that song.

My husband thinks I'm insane.

[Linda]

What a great tip! Thanks! :)

[MamaToo]

I was laughing with Kelli about grammar & worship music - we often sing a song that says "one thing I want... to know you and to be known by you..." My husband always leans over to me and says, "isn't that TWO things?"
Great tip, great comments. :)
-MamaToo
http://mamatoo.blogspot.com/2008/01/out-of-touch.html

[Caroline]

First off, I forgot to put what my link was about. Sheesh. Anyways, sick of naked barbies? See me.

Second, I just discovered you and I'm already in ♥ (but not in the creepy stalker type way....)

[Matt]

Thanks, Shannon, for the basic but necessary reminders about our English language as it is used and very much abused in the blogosphere. Now that you've addressed grammar, how about tackling spelling next week? You could highlight the difference between their and they're, for starters, then talk about the use of a dictionary, etc. Or if you're too busy, I can just post a really long comment! Save our language!

[Nicki]

Proper grammar is something I pay attention to also, but I will admit I make the mistakes sometimes too--normally in haste.

[Laane]

I do it all the time.

Last week I had a discussion about it with a teacher, because he didn't consider it a mistake.
He said that language is a developing system and we need to accept that it changes over time.

Hmmmm....

[Christy]

I use the same trick, my mom taught it to me when young. Then when I taught 5th grade english/grammar, I learned the actual rules of direct objects and subjects.

[Heid]

HEY I GOT A SMILEY FACE!! How did that happen??? lol

[Ruth]

Thank you so much for explaining it that way. And you even sounded NICE as you did it. EVERYBODY "hyper-corrects" and uses "Janie and I" regardless of whether they are dealing with a subject or an object. Thank you for being a hold out for the right way! Thank you, thank you, thank you! Your blog is widely read, so it might even do some good!

[chickadee]

this is my biggest grammar peeve. and i hear it all the time. especially on television!

[linda]

THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU!! This absolutely drives me nuts when people say this wrong!. It's as though the pendulum has swung too far the other way; for years no one ever used "I" and now they use it way too often!

Now could you please announce it to the rest of the country, expecially the journalists?! They are the worst grammarians! LOL

[Tara]

Our pastor messes that one up all the time! My DH was an English major and I was almost one (except that I didn't want to teach junior high or high school and what else can you do with an English major???). There is nothing more grating to our ears than to hear our pastor say something like, "Jesus died for sinners like you and I". I have to brush the hair back down on the back of my husband's neck!

[Lisa]

BLESS YOU FOR THIS!!! ~ From a former high school Engish teacher!

[Robin]

I just taught this to my ELL students last week!

[prasti]

chickadee wrote: "this is my biggest grammar peeve..."

I agree. I confess that I too am a grammar (and spelling) geek. I learned the I vs. Me tip in h.s. and it has come in handy ever since! Thank you!