Words That Work ... or Don't

The Dilemma of Me, Myself and I

As children, many of us probably had our moms correct us when we said, “Me and Billy are going for a bike ride.”

“Billy and I,” she would admonish.

“Can me and Jenny have a lemonade stand?” we may have inquired.

“Jenny and I,” Mom would correct.

It’s not surprising that so many of us steer clear of “me” in places where it truly is the correct choice.

Consider this example:
My boss is taking Jim and I to lunch.

My boss is taking Jim and me to lunch.

“Jim and me” is correct. The quick and easy way to make the right choice is to eliminate Jim from the statement. You wouldn’t say, “My boss is taking I to lunch.” You would say, “My boss is taking me to lunch.” Adding Jim doesn’t change anything — except the amount of the bill!

The same type of example shows how “myself” can be misused. How many times have you seen this phrasing: “Please contact Mary or myself with questions.”

Again, if you eliminated Mary, you would not say, “Please contact myself with questions.”
“Me” is the right choice: “Please contact me with questions.”

“I” is a subject, the doer of an action. “Me” is an object, the receiver of an action. “Myself” is a reflexive pronoun: “I try not to take myself to seriously.” It often is used for emphasis: “I myself would never take a sick day that wasn’t warranted.”

Mom was right about the courtesy of mentioning another person’s name before your own; however, I’m sure that she didn’t intend for you to structure your sentences with grammatical errors.

Ruthless Editor follows The Associated Press Stylebook and Briefing on Media Law guidelines for word and punctuation usage. Webster's New World College Dictionary serves as a secondary reference.

If you'd like to receive Kathy's FREE monthly tips on grammar and punctuation, email your request to: contact@ruthlesseditor.com