You and I, or you and me?

Jo:    Welcome to our new programme Q & A of the Week. Question and Answer.   I'm Jo.
  
Feifei:   我是冯菲菲，大家好。在你问我答节目中我们会解答大家提出的关于英语学习方面的问 题，不论是语法，语音还是词汇只要你问我们就答。 
 
Jo:    And if you have a question about the English language – you can email us  at questions.chinaelt@bbc.co.uk. We'll be repeating that address again   later so listen out for it. 
 
Feifei:    So Jo, what's our question this week?
 
Jo:    So this week we've had an email from someone called highsfar – they     didn't leave their real name but their question was very interesting.    They want to know when to say 'you and me' and when to say 'you and I'.
 
Feifei:   啊！这个问题问得非常好 – 我们什么时候说  you and me, 什么时候又说  you and   I.
 
Jo:    I think this is    something people get a little confused about and it does take  a little bit of explaining. So are you ready Feifei?
 
Feifei:    Yes.
 
Jo:    Me and I are what we call personal pronouns.
 
Feifei:   人称代词，比方说  I, you, he, she, we, they 这些词在英语中都被称为人称代词。
 
Jo:    Now when they are used as the subject of a sentence we say I, you, he,
   she, we or they.
 
Feifei:    Subject 主语。当一个人称代词被作为一句话的主语使用是，这时候我们用主格这些 代词的主格，也就是  I, you, he, she, we, they.
 
Jo:    I go shopping or, we watch TV etc. However, if the personal pronoun is the  object of the sentence they change a little.
 
Feifei:    Object宾语。然而当一个人称代词被作为一句话的宾语使用的时候，那就怎么变了呢？So how do they change, Jo? 

Jo:    Well for example – I would say 'she asked me to post a letter'. We would   never say 'she asked I to post a letter'. 'I' changes to 'me' when it's the
   object of the sentence.
 
Feifei:    OK, 比方说人称代词  I 在一句话中被作为宾语使用，那么这时候它就会变成 me.   She 就会变成 her.
 
Jo:    So we'd say I watched her in that movie, not I watched she.
 
Feifei:    Or I sang him a song – not I sang he etc. 
 
Jo:    So in answer to highsfar's question – you would say 'you and I' when it's    the subject of what you're saying. You and I should go to the meeting.    'You and I' are the subjects of the sentence.
 
Feifei:   所以记住凡是人称代词作主语的时候就用  I, 也就是人称代词的主格。 You and I are    teaching everyone English. 也就是说当  you and I 在一句话中作宾语，这时候我 就得说 you and me, 对吗  Jo?
 
Jo:    That's right. So we would say Feifei wants to talk to you and me. Not Feifei  wants to talk to you and I 
 
Feifei:   因为你和我 you and I 在这句话种作了宾语，所以我们说  you and me.
 
Jo:    He wanted to meet you and me later – not he wanted to meet you and I.
 
Feifei:   所以说作一句话主语的时候我们用 you and I, 作一句话宾语的时候说  you and me     But there is a small problem with this rule – English speakers don't always    follow the rules do they?
 
Jo:    Yes just to confuse you – English speakers will often say 'you and me'     when they should say 'you and I' – so it wouldn't be unusual to hear     someone say you and me should go and watch that film.
 
Feifei:    But our tip would be to follow the rule.
 
Jo:    Absolutely follow the rule but don't be surprised if you hear an English   speaker saying it differently.
 
Feifei:   不过大家要记住，虽然英语里有很多的条条框框，但是英国人不总是遵守这些语法规   则，所以有时候我们也会听到英国人使用 you and me 来作一句话的主语或是宾语。    
 
Jo:    So do you have any problems with English that you'd like to ask us about? 
 
Feifei:   是的，只要你有英语学习方面的问题，不论是语法，词汇还是语音都可以发邮件给我们  questions.chinaelt@bbc.co.uk. 
 
Jo:    We hope to hear from you soon! Bye for now.
 
Feifei:    Bye.

This week's question is a very common question from learners of English. Should I say 'you and me' or 'you and I'?

In this programme Jo Hunter and Feifei Feng from BBC Learning English talk us through the rules. They explain all about personal pronouns.

I, you, he, she, we and they are all personal pronouns. When a personal pronoun is the subject of a sentence they don't change.

- I listen to the radio.
OR
- We play computer games.

The personal pronouns change when they become the object of the sentence.

- He wanted me to check his work.
NOT
- He wanted I to check his work.

So if we're talking about two people - you and I - and they are the subject of the sentence - we would use you and I in English.

- You and I are meeting a colleague tonight.
- He and I are best friends.

However, if those two people become the object of the sentence then 'you and I' changes to 'you and me'.

- He is meeting you and me later.
- He is friends with us.
- He is friends with you and me.

One unfortunate thing you have to be very careful of though, is that native British speakers don't always follow that rule. They might say, "You and me are meeting a colleague tonight" or "Me and him are best friends".

Our advice is to follow the rules but just be aware that native speakers don't always do that!!

Thank you Highsfar for your question. If you have a question please get in touch. You can email us at questions.chinaelt@bbc.co.uk. We'll answer one question every week, so get sending those questions!

Glossary 词汇

rules
规则

personal pronouns
人称代词

subject
主语

sentence
句子

object
宾语

unfortunate
不幸的

native British speakers
英语为母语的英国人

advice
建议，劝告

be aware
注意