Confusing I and Me

Picture this: Jessica Kasserman, a high school senior with a strong academic record and high hopes, walks into the office of Mr. Roberts, an admissions representative of XYZ University. â€Å"Thank you for inviting my mom and I to see the campus,† she says. The college representative cringes. Jessica may have blown the interview already. Which Is Correct? Jessica should have said â€Å"my mom and me.† It’s one of the most common mistakes in word usage, so dont fret if youve found yourself guilty of this gaffe. Still, for those in the know, the misuse of â€Å"I† and â€Å"me† is agonizing; you would do well to learn whats right and wrong here. People seem to fear the word â€Å"me†Ã¢â‚¬â€perhaps this goes back to our elementary school days when our teachers steered us away from the word in favor of My mom and I went to the store yesterday. However, the kind of sentences were looking at here has a different structure, meaning the evasion of me no longer applies. â€Å"The secret is just between you and me may sound strange to your ear, but its correct. The Rules of I Versus Me â€Å"I† is a nominative pronoun and is used as a subject of a sentence or clause, while â€Å"me† is an objective pronoun and used as an object. The trouble with â€Å"me† usually begins when speakers are stringing together two or more objects in a sentence. â€Å"I† is not an objective case word, but people try to plug it in as an object because it just sounds smarter. Sound too technical? Then think of this: To determine if you should use I or me, leave out the extra object in your sentence and see if it is still correct. You might be tempted to say:â€Å"Would you explain that to John and I?† But then, when you omit the other object, you’ll have:â€Å"Would you explain that to I?† Now that just sounds silly. Try this:â€Å"Would you explain that to John and me?† You know its correct because you can break it down and it will still make sense:â€Å"Would you explain that to me?† Examples WRONG: Leave the decision to Laura and I.WRONG: Leave the decision to I.RIGHT: Leave the decision to Laura and me. WRONG: Please join Glenna and I for lunch.RIGHT: Please join me for lunch.RIGHT: Please join Glenna and me for lunch. WRONG: It’s between you and I.RIGHT: It’s between you and me. WRONG: The group consists of Laura, Joe, and I.RIGHT: The group consists of Laura, Joe, and me.