Practice
Is 'myself and John' correct?
John and I planned the event. The director thanked John and me. I introduced myself to John. Each sentence needs a different pronoun because the words do different jobs.
Choose John and I for a compound subject, John and me for an object, and myself only when it refers back to I in the same clause.
Read and practice
Read the examples and try the written questions in this guide. Listening recordings are not available for this lesson yet.
Try the written questions
John and I will bring the supplies. /dʒɑn ən aɪ wɪl brɪŋ ðə səˈplaɪz/
The short answer
Do not use myself in the phrase myself and John when you simply mean John and me. Use John and I as a subject and John and me as an object. Use myself only when it points back to I, as in I reminded myself to call John.
The supervisor spoke to John and me after the meeting.
Why it works: To is a preposition, so the phrase needs the object pronoun me, not the reflexive pronoun myself.
5 more examples
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John and I will bring the supplies.
The pair will bring the supplies, so the phrase is the subject.
Not this:The organizer asked
John and meto bring the supplies. What changes: The organizer does the asking. John and me receive the request, so the phrase is an object. -
Please send the schedule to John and me.
The phrase follows the preposition to, which takes object pronouns.
Not this:
John and Iwill read the schedule tonight. What changes: This pair does the reading, so it is the subject. -
I gave myself an extra hour to finish the report.
I gave something to I. Myself points back to the subject I in the same clause.
Not this:The editor gave
John and mean extra hour. What changes: The editor gives the extra hour to two other people, so the object form me is needed. -
John and I introduced ourselves to the new team.
The subject is John and I, and the reflexive pronoun refers back to that plural subject.
Not this:The new team introduced
John and meto the client. What changes: The new team performs the action. John and me are the people introduced. -
Between John and me, the earlier train is more convenient.
Between is a preposition, so use the object pronoun me.
Not this:
John and Ican take the earlier train. What changes: The pair can take the train, so the phrase is the subject.
Read the full guide
Find the job of the whole phrase before you choose a pronoun. If the phrase does the action, use a subject form. If another person does the action to the phrase, or the phrase follows a preposition, use an object form. Then check whether a reflexive pronoun really points back to the subject.
Start with the whole phrase
Treat John and I, John and me, or John and myself as one phrase. Find out whether that phrase does the action or receives it. This decision matters more than the order of the names.
John and I organized the workshop.
John and I do the organizing, so this is a subject phrase.
Choose the subject phrase: ___ will meet the client tomorrow.
Use John and I: John and I will meet the client tomorrow.
Use I when the pair does the action
Use I in a compound subject. The phrase comes before the verb that describes what the pair does. You can test it by temporarily removing the other name: I prepared the slides, not me prepared the slides.
John and I prepared the slides.
The pair performs the action prepared, so I is the subject pronoun.
Complete the sentence: John and ___ checked the room before the guests arrived.
Use I: John and I checked the room before the guests arrived.
Use me after a verb or preposition
Use me when someone does something to the pair or when the pair follows a preposition. The simple-form check is useful here too: The coach thanked me, not the coach thanked I.
The coach thanked John and me after the game.
The coach does the thanking. John and me receive it, so the phrase is an object.
Complete the sentence: Please sit between John and ___.
Use me: Please sit between John and me. Between is a preposition.
Use myself only when it points back to I
Myself is a reflexive pronoun. It normally refers back to I in the same clause. Use it when the subject and the affected person are the same. It does not simply make an object phrase sound more formal.
I reminded myself to save a copy.
I is the person who reminded, and myself is the same person who received the reminder.
Choose the reflexive pronoun: I taught ___ how to use the new program.
Use myself: I taught myself how to use the new program.
Test the sentence without the other name
Removing the other name can show the grammar role quickly. Say The guide spoke to me, so write The guide spoke to John and me. Say I emailed the guide, so write John and I emailed the guide. Use this check for the role, not as a reason to change a correct reflexive sentence.
The guide emailed John and me.
The simple sentence is The guide emailed me, so the compound object needs me.
Which phrase completes the sentence: John and ___ emailed the guide?
Use I: John and I emailed the guide because the pair does the emailing.
Keep a correct reflexive pair
A reflexive pronoun can be correct after a pair when it refers back to that pair. John and I introduced ourselves means that the two people introduced the same two people. The reflexive form must match its subject.
John and I gave ourselves time to prepare.
Ourselves refers back to the plural subject John and I.
Complete the sentence: John and I introduced ___ to the visitors.
Use ourselves: John and I introduced ourselves to the visitors.
Before you go
Remember this
Use John and I when the pair does the action. Use John and me after a verb or preposition when the pair receives the action. Use myself only when it refers back to I in the same clause. Choose by the role of the whole phrase rather than by how formal a word seems.
Practice with the written examples
You can practice with the written questions in the Learn tab. Each answer includes an explanation.
Try the written questionsListening test not available yet
This lesson does not have the recordings needed for a listening test. Use the written questions in the guide to check your understanding.
Try the written questionsQuestions about "Is 'myself and John' correct?"
Is 'myself and John' correct in a sentence?
In careful standard English, use John and me when the pair is an object, as in The manager called John and me. Use myself when it refers back to I in the same clause, as in I reminded myself to call John.
John and I will bring the supplies.
Should I say 'John and I' or 'John and me'?
Use John and I when the pair does the action. Use John and me when another person acts on the pair or when the phrase follows a preposition. Compare John and I arrived early with The host greeted John and me.
The organizer asked John and me to bring the supplies.
Why is 'between John and me' correct?
Between is a preposition. In this pattern, a preposition is followed by an object pronoun, so write between John and me. The same pattern appears in to John and me and for John and me.
Please send the schedule to John and me.
Can I use myself for emphasis?
Yes, when myself adds emphasis to I: I myself checked the address. This is different from using myself as an ordinary object. For an ordinary object, write The manager called me.
John and I will read the schedule tonight.
How can I check a compound pronoun phrase?
Temporarily remove the other name and test the remaining pronoun. If you would say I sent the email, write John and I sent the email. If you would say the client emailed me, write the client emailed John and me.
I gave myself an extra hour to finish the report.