We don't want you to speak good.
We don’t want you to speak good, we want you to speak well.
It’s just a little difference there.
Lots of people get really confused when they say things like, “him and me” or “she and I.”
It’s clearly wrong to say, “Me am going to the store and if you need some help give I a call.”
I think very few people get that wrong. Except cavemen, they mess it up all the time.
I say old man, have you seen Grog down by the watering hole? I mean his use of hygiene and grammar is absolutely revolting!
Ppppppppppppppppppppppppp… Ahhhh!
So most people just end up using “I” whether it’s right or wrong. Because it’s easy that way.
Here are some examples.
Spoiler! They sound right, but they’re not.
Number one: The best way to contact my brother and I is e-mail.
Wrong!
Okay, so it’s really pretty basic. The first person, singular pronoun is I when it’s used as a pronoun and me when it’s used as an object. But if that doesn’t make any sense here’s the easy way to get it right.
Just take the other person out of the sentence and you instantly know which one to use. You can just feel it’s right.
“The best way to contact my brother and I is e-mail.” When you take it out becomes, “The best way to contact I is e-mail.”
It’s “The best way to contact me is e-mail.” So you should say “The best way to contact my brother and me is e-mail.”
Ding ding ding! We have a winner.
Brilliant! Well, correct, at any rate.
On to the second example. “My friend and me are going to the store.”
Wrong!… er.
I love it when I say “gonna.” Like that’s even a word.
Start by taking the other person out and it becomes, “Me is going to the store.” So it should be “My friend and I are going to the store.” Because “I am going to the store.” actually is correct… that sounds right… and not like a caveman.
Also, “Him and I are going to the store.” is wrong for the same reason. Because it should be “He and I,” because “Him is going to the store.” just doesn’t sound right.
That’s it, now you know how to use “me” and “I” correctly. And remember, if you speak like a caveman, you might as well be one.
Old Man Grub is down by the herd, picking lice off his mate. Delicious.
Transcribed by: Caitlin Y.
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39 Comments
Clockmeister
Right on re: the use of Him, I, Her, etc. How about addressing the growing improper use of the adverbial ...The Perspicacious Loris
@Carolina and Coyningham, why would it be 'I' if the verb is conjugated for 'it'? Why use the subject ...ColinUK
A common error in British is even worse: "Me and him are going to the shop."!alexcbeal
You make a cute caveman face :)holta3
Thank you thank you thank you!!! I hate when people think they're being all proper by ALWAYS saying ___ and ...Space_Cadet
I love.AngInAmerica
My favorite grammar tip: "Superman does good. You do well." :)wx5aaa
Im gonna go to the store.andreacro
00:26 - 00:28 funnyest :)Talor
thats what me teacher saysTHAT1GUY
wait... does that mean me talk like caveman???Michael
You should have called this show Me and I, because you didn't cover anything about the use of the word ...Johnb300m
"except maybe a caveman would talk that way" what? that is so condescending.... Haven't the GEICO commercials taught you anything about real cavemen???Meandering
The saddest part is that yes, we as english speakers are some of the worst violators of the language. ...Carolina
I completely agree with Conyngham. As a teacher of English I have to explain things like these all the time. ...Conyngham
@kbombbilly - "It is I" is the correct form, as are "it is he" and "it is she." That said, ...steph
back to english class =P. I love the british accent very funny =].Jennifer McKenzie
I think the guys from Geico Insurance are going to sue you. Or as the great Southern speakers say ...Rebecca
Love the British though!kbombbilly
So do you say "It is me" or "It is I"? I've seen both in published texts.xigging
thanks for the quick lesson. should come in handy when writing papers. although for general conversation, I don't really see ...kd
i think what he is really trying to tell us is that the best way to contact them is by ...Bob Romanelli
Thank you for keeping grammar in English. Even the anchors on TV are wrong. They say things ...thorondor
Yes, I haven't yet tried to learn Dutch, though I would like to and probably should Go for grammarhenrynew
Me Join... Me find no difficult to join. But the way In singapore Me, I and my self can be used ...Henry
Me no Caveman... Me want join 22. Me no Know how to count 22+1=22. Show me the light. Great podcast ...Ingrid [22]
@thondor, wait till you learn Dutch ;), I think it has even more little surprises. Here we have a word ...thorondor
English is full of these fun little suprises. It probably makes it one of the harder languages to learn. I ...Ingrid [22]
wow, that's what I call usefull. I never really learned English by learning grammar rules, I just say what sounds ...Russ [22]
But wouldn't that be, "My shadow and I"?Phil
There's one exception to the "me"/"I" rule that if it "just doesn't sound right, then it's not." And that is: ...Brent
Me thinks that this was a great show...So me is a caveman. Who knew?christy
Oh, that you would have had time to address "myself" too. (Like oh so many "professional" emails I receive that ...Curtis
Me gonna be politically correct and just say.....caveperson.Soul Sister [22]
So as a caveman he looks strangely similar to an old boyfriend of mine....Ray
Please don't give cavemen a bad name. Thanks.Nospinplease
That is a good tip to use! Thanks!Joe
I've heard that women tend to talk more than men. Makes me wonder if back in the cave days ...Nadine [22]
I'm glad there are only cavemen, and no cave women.