Writing Tip

Use the Proper Pronoun with “Than”

Difficulty Level: Intermediate

Recommendation: When comparing two things using “than,” use the proper case for personal pronouns.

Which answer is best?

She is taller than:

A. I
B. me

General Guidance

“Than” can be interpreted as a conjunction that introduces a clause (“She is taller than I am”) or a preposition that takes an object (“She is taller than me.”). Consider the pattern below:

Subject (Part 1 of Comparison) + Verb + Comparative Adjective + Than + Personal Pronoun (Part 2 of Comparison)

If the verb in the pattern is a linking verb (like the example that I provided above), then treating “than” as a preposition is fine (in fact, saying “She is taller than I” may be considered pretentious or pedantic). If the verb in the pattern is an intransitive verb (a verb that does not have an object), then treating “than” as a preposition is fine. Example: “She runs faster than him.” However, if the verb in the pattern is a transitive verb (a verb that takes an object), then employ “than” as a subordinating conjunction, cast the second part of the comparison in the subjective or objective case (depending on how it is used in the subordinating clause), and write out all of the words (don’t use implicit constructions). For example:

Don’t: She gave him more credit than I.

Do: She gave him more credit than I gave him.

Don’t: She gave him more credit than me.

Do: She gave him more credit than she gave me.

Supporting Stuff

Technical authors rarely use personal pronouns, but sometimes they do, in articles for trade magazines, when they are interviewed by a journalist, when they communicate to their colleagues, peers, and clients. So the question, “Which answer is best?’ is not trivial. It is both philosophical and pragmatic.

It is philosophical because “best” implies that the answer is in controversy, which it is. The question isn’t “Which answer is correct?” Wouldn’t it be great if only one of the two options was allowed by English grammar? Sadly, this is not the case. Let’s look at this controversy by way of analysis of the example.

“She” is a personal pronoun. In English, almost all nouns have lost their inflection, which is the way that a noun changes depending upon how it is used—as a subject, as an object, or as a possessive. Personal pronouns are an exception. For example, “She” is the third-person feminine subjective pronoun, but there are other forms of the third person: “Her” is also third-person feminine, but it is used when the pronoun is cast in the objective case (object of a verb or preposition, for example). So we would say “about her” instead of “about she.”

“Is” is a linking verb (formally called a copulative verb, sorry). It is used as an “equals” sign. So “Jane is correct” is the same as “Jane = correct.”

“Taller” is the comparative degree of the adjective “tall.” Adjectives appear in three different forms called “degrees”:

Positive: Tall. Used as an ordinary modifier.

Comparative: Taller. Used to compare two things (this is important to this discussion). Often followed by “than” (which is the crux of this discussion).

Superlative: Tallest. Used to declare the highest extent, the greatest of three or more alternatives, the greatest degree possible for a modifier.

“Than” is, well, a pain in the behind because it can be employed and interpreted as a conjunction OR a preposition, and that is the controversy. If you argue that “than” is a conjunction, then the second item in the comparison should reflect the case of the first item in the comparison. Therefore, the best answer is “I,” as in, “She is taller than I,” because “She” is used as the subject of the sentence, and therefore, the second part of the comparison should be subjective. People who take this position generally assume that the second part of the comparison inherits the verb + adjective of the first part of the comparison (the “is” introduces a subordinate clause, where “than” behaves as a subordinating conjunction, the second part of the comparison behaves as the subject of the subordinate clause, and the explicit verb of the sentence behaves as the implicit verb of the subordinating conjunction). So, extending the example would result in:

She is taller than I [verb + adjective in the positive degree].

She is taller than I [am tall].

Therefore, it would be grammatically incorrect to say “She is taller than me is tall.”

But what if you don’t use a linking verb? What if you use a verb like “give”? Then, using the argument that “than” is a subordinating conjunction, the case of the second part of the comparison depends upon how it is used in the subordinate clause. This is not an academic notion. Whether you use “I” or “me” bears critically upon interpretation of the sentence. There is a nuance to this calculus. Consider this example:

She gave him more credit than I/me.

Whether you employ “I” or “me” determines the meaning of the sentence. If you employ “I,” then the sentence becomes:

She gave him more credit than I [gave him].

If you employ “me,” then the sentence becomes:

She gave him more credit than [she gave me].

However, if you argue that “than” is a preposition, then the second part of the comparison is the object of the preposition and should therefore be cast in the objective case (“me”). Therefore, the best answer is “me,” as in, “She is taller than me.” Note that there is no inheritance of the verb or adjective.

It is a pragmatic question because the answer you select may determine the way in which the sentence should be interpreted and may say something about you, regardless of your intentions.

Employing the objective case in the second part of a comparison (especially with linking verbs) is regarded as informal and may even be regarded as a sign of immature education.

What Is the Trend?

Unfortunately, the trend for treating “than” like a preposition (which is really our intuition) is not catching on. According to Google Books Ngram Viewer (https://books.google.com/ngrams/), treating “than” as a conjunction is in resurgence (see examples below). Notice the uptick in the more formal treatment.