I heard this on a radio program today.
Problem:
The speaker used the wrong pronoun.
Explanation:
The pronoun “myself” can be used properly in two ways:
- as an INTENSIVE of “I” or “me”: I repaired the car myself.
- REFLEXIVELY in place of “me”: I hit myself when I left the building.
Unfortunately, it is becoming an increasingly common English blunder to put “myself” where it does not belong.
Specifically, “myself” is used improperly — in place of the personal pronouns “I” and “me” — in three ways:
- as a SUBJECT: Myself was the person who accidentally deleted the file.
- as an OBJECT: They gave the award to myself.
- as a COMPLEMENT: Today’s teacher is myself.
Misuse of “myself” has become so common that I hear it almost every day now. These days, even supposedly educated U.S. presidential hopefuls such as Barack Obama are using “myself” where it does not belong.
The solution to the problematic phrase heard on the radio comes from using (instead of “myself”) the pronoun that means something that belongs to me.
Solution:
“… a long-time friend of mine.”