Who??

[ESL-lover]

Hello,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Who is it ? It is Tom.

Who is he ? He is Tom.

I found these questions in grammar book.....

What is the differance?

Thanks,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

:wink:

[Tdol]

The first is on the phone and talking to Tom.

[RonBee]

• A: Who is it?
  B: It's Tom. You know me.

• A: Who is he?
  B: That's Tom Hanks. He's married to your cousin Mary.

The questions tend to be asked in different contexts.

:)

[Casiopea]

1. Who is it ? It is Tom. (refers to both she and he)

"it" stands for both genders 'he' and 'she', and it's especially used when the speaker cannot see the person. By the way, people also use "Who is this?" when speaking on the phone or when pointing to a person in a photograph.

2. Who is he ? He is Tom. (male, diectic)

"he" refers to a third person and it's a diectic pronoun, which means, not you or me, the people talking, but the other person, male.

[Tdol]

'Who is it' can also be used when someone is knocking at the door.

[jwschang]

1. Who is it ? It is Tom. (refers to both she and he)

"it" stands for both genders 'he' and 'she', and it's especially used when the speaker cannot see the person. By the way, people also use "Who is this?" when speaking on the phone or when pointing to a person in a photograph.

2. Who is he ? He is Tom. (male, diectic)

"he" refers to a third person and it's a diectic pronoun, which means, not you or me, the people talking, but the other person, male.

1. Sentence 1 is addressed AND referring to the listener (second person).
2. Sentence 2 is addressed to the listener (2nd person) but is referring to a third person.