You’re probably unfamiliar with “It is I.” In fact, I’ve been laughed at when replying to a question with “It is I” instead of “It is me.”
“Are we at the British royal family party?”
But you have to know that “it is I” is nothing sophisticated or noble—it is 100 percent grammatically correct.
“Wait, what? That sounds really weird. Are you serious?”
Yes, I’m serious.
Here’s why.
The grammar rule is that we use a linking verb—in this case, the verb “is”—when we want to connect a subject to a subject complement. The complement can be a pronoun or a noun that describes the subject. Subject complements after linking verbs should be in the nominative case. This means we use the subject pronoun “I” rather than the object pronoun “me.” So, in the sentence “it is I,” “is” functions as the linking verb that connects the subject “it” to its complement “I.”
Here are some other correct examples:
- Who called John? It was she.
- Who told you about it? It must have been they.
- Who cares? It is we.
So, should we adhere to this rule?
Well, not really. Many native English speakers use “me” after linking verbs, and it sounds very natural. The Merriam-Webster Dictionary of English Usage says that it’s a style choice: “It is I” is formal, while “It is me” is more casual. Besides, English grammar rules have always changed because they are shaped by the people who use them. When there’s a gap between formal rules and the way we actually use English, it’s always better to go with how we use it in daily life.
However, as Grammatical Teacher, I think it’s only right to teach the proper rule that “it is I” should be used in formal and academic writing.
“It is I” might sound unusual in everyday conversation, but it’s grammatically correct and has the same meaning as “It is me.”
As a final note, “It is I” is not as rare as you might think. Many authors actually use “It is I” or “Is it I?” instead of “It is me” or “Is it me?” in their writing. I recently finished The Horla by Guy de Maupassant, and he wrote:
“But is it I? Is it I? Who can it be? Who?”