Home > Grammar > Details > Examples of the use of who, whom, whose, which and what
 

A.     who, whom, whose

who as subject:

Who keeps the keys? (affirmative verb)

Who took my gun? (affirmative verb)

Who are these boys11 (interrogative verb)

who, whom as objects of a verb

Normal English:  Who did you see?

Very formal English: Whom did the committee appoint?

whose as subject.

Whose car broke down71 (affirmative verb)

Whose (books) are these? (interrogative verb)

whose as object of a verb:

Whose umbrella did you borrow?

B.     which

which as subject:

Which pigeon arrived first? (affirmative verb)

Which of them is the eldest? (affirmative verb)

which as object of a verb:

Which hand do you use?      

Which of these dates would you prefer?

C.     what

what as subject:

What caused the explosion? (affirmative verb)

What kind of tree is that? (interrogative verb)

what as object of a verb:

What paper do you read?       

What did they eat?