We talked about pronouns several weeks ago. A pronoun replaces a noun.
The pronoun me takes the place of your own name. Me is an object pronoun.
Things happen to an object, so things happen to me.
The object pronoun me can be used as the object of the preposition at the end of a prepositional phrase.
Here are three prepositions: to, for, and from.
These prepositions can take the object pronoun me as an object of the preposition.
Dad gave the book to me.
Mom baked a cake for me.
John took the heavy box from me.
Each of these sentences has a prepositional phrase. The phrase begins with the preposition to, for, or from.
The object pronoun me is the object of the preposition: to me, for me, from me.
It’s important to remember that we always use the pronoun me as an object pronoun.
Look at these sentences. They are nearly the same as the sentences above.
Dad gave the book to Tom and me.
Mom baked a cake for my twin sister and me.
John took the heavy box from Sarah and me.
Each sentence has a prepositional phrase beginning with to, for, or from. But each of these sentences has a compound object of the preposition. The object of the preposition is someone and me.
Tom and me
my twin sister and me
Sarah and me
The lesson here is that the object pronoun me must be used in a prepositional phrase, even when you have a compound object of the proposition.
I often hear people say, “Give your money to Tom or I.” “Do you want to come to the park with Betty and I?“
This is incorrect usage. The pronoun I is a subject pronoun. You cannot use the pronoun I in a prepositional phrase.
Remember: Always use the object pronoun me, not the subject pronoun I, for an object of the preposition, even if it’s a compound object of the preposition.