Okay, Grammarians....This is she? This is her?

[Wynette]

When I get a call at work, and the person asks for me, I always say, "This is she." But, 95% of the time when I hear others in the office, they say, "This is her." Have I been incorrect all these years, or am I corect?

 

[mamaKate]

You are correct.

 

[speckledhen]

This is she is correct. Reverse it and say She is this and that makes sense. Reverse it and you wouldn't say Her is this, right?

 

[hikerchick]

I just say "speaking".

 

[Wynette]

Whew. Okay, I confess that I was feeling annoyed when I heard someone recently say "this is her" but I got to thinking that maybe I AM wrong. Thanks, friends!

hikerchick - what a perfect solution!

 

[English Chick]

I also say "speaking"

 

[saddina]

"She" means a female, "Her" is a female who is not the speaker. In languages other than english the distinction is clearer, but you are correct.

Now if I could get children to use bring and take properly......

 

[Wynette]

Saddina, just send them over to BYC - we've got plenty of Grammarians on here that will "help" them use these words properly!

 

[The Chicken Lady]

Quote:
Exactly right. There are a lot of things you can do with the English language to check yourself grammatically.

 

[Wynette]

Well, does "she is this" actually make sense? But anyway...I'm just glad I've been saying it correctly. And, "she is this" does seem to make more sense than "her is this." Gads, so much to know!