I'm curious if there are any special constructions or idioms whereby object or subject pronouns swap.
For example, I hear many people say 'Janet and I' instead of 'Janet and me'
and I also think that in passive voice it sounds ok to mix pronouns slightly, another example
'The work was done by I' - I know this is not correct but when I was living in Birmingham England, I was sure I heard expressions like this all the time!
Are there any well known idioms which disobey subject/object pronoun rules?
***** NOT A TEACHER *****
Teflsecretagent,
(1) Here in the United States, many people (of all ages) say
something like: Me and my best friend went to Disneyland
yesterday.
(a) I do not think this is an idiom. Maybe it is just bad English.
Hopefully, most Americans realize that the correct way is:
My friend and I ....
(2) Also, many people are starting to use "I" after a preposition
-- even by supposedly educated people. One theory is that they
think that "I" sounds more elegant than "me"; another theory is that
they faintly remember that "good" English calls for "It is I," so they
feel it is very elegant to say: This secret is between you and I.
***** NOT A TEACHER *****