When he first entered the classroom no one knew who/whom/whoever/whomever he was?

Question

I am unable to understand which one is the correct?

Always use who; don't use any of the other ones. Even native speakers don't understand how to use them and they're dying out. — John Lawler, Mar 05 '20 at 18:05

score 0 · Accepted Answer · edited Mar 05 '20 at 17:49

0

The choice between who[ever]/whom[ever] comes down to the role of the relative pronoun in the subordinate clause. In this case, it will be nominative rather than oblique since who is linked to he by was.

Now, for whoever vs who, whoever implies an indefiniteness which isn't here so the correct phrase would be “When he first entered the classroom no one knew who he was.”

edited Mar 05 '20 at 17:49

Andrew Leach

101,901

answered Mar 05 '20 at 17:29

Donald Hosek

276

When he first entered the classroom no one knew who/whom/whoever/whomever he was?

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