Common Grammar Pitfalls and Mistakes (Speedy Study Guides)

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Wrong

Please explain me how improve my English. Please explain to me how to improve my English.

We studied during four hours.

Wrong Right

Is ready my passport? Is my passport ready?

You cannot buy all what you like! You cannot buy all that you like!

Wrong Right

She is success. She is successful.

My mother wanted that I be doctor. My mother wanted me to be a doctor.

Wrong Right

The life is hard! Life is hard.

How many childrens you have? How many children do you have?

Wrong Right

My brother has 10 years. My brother is 10 (years old).

I want eat now. I want to eat now.

Wrong Right

You are very nice, as your mother. You are very nice, like your mother.

She said me that she liked you. She told me that she liked you.

Wrong Right

My husband engineer. My husband is an engineer.

I came Australia to study English. I came to Australia to study English.

Wrong Right

It is more hot now. It’s hotter now.

You can give me an information? Can you give me some information?

Wrong Right

They cooked the dinner themself. They cooked the dinner themselves.

Me and Johnny live here. Johnny and I live here.

Wrong Right

I closed very quietly the door. I closed the door very quietly.

You like dance with me? Would you like to dance with me?

Wrong Right

I go always to school by subway. I always go to school by subway.

If I will be in London, I will contact to you.

Wrong Right

We drive usually to home. We usually drive home.

Right

We studied for four hours.

If I am in London, I will contact you.

Grammar Mistakes in Essay Writing It somehow goes without saying that a successful essay must be grammatically correct. However, grammar mistakes are one of the most frequent reasons why many students fail to perform the task. So, what are the potential grammar pitfalls to avoid?

The most common grammar mistakes can be roughly divided into five groups:

Noun form mistakes. Correct noun forms are of utmost importance, as nouns can perform functions of both subject and object. Key grammar areas, studying of which will help you succeed, are countable and uncountable nouns, plural forms and the use of determiners with singular nouns. Verb form mistakes. The main grammar rules to remember, when it comes to verb form mistakes, are those, related to the place of auxiliary verbs in sentence, usage of state verbs, meanings of the modals and the correct use of infinitive. Subject-predicate agreement. The subject-predicate agreement in English seems to be easy: subject and predicate must always agree in number. But despite this simplicity, the grammar point can present considerable difficulty. First, it is important to pay attention to the cases with a compound subject, which can be introduced by the words both, neither, etc., and still acquire the plural predicate. Second, in the American English, unlike British English and many other European languages, collective nouns take a singular predicate. Pronouns. Pronouns are a part of speech that can perform functions of a noun and, therefore, are used very often. Pronouns must necessarily agree with the nouns they refer to, and it is important to remember that some indefinite pronouns can be only plural or only singular, but some of them can be both depending on the situation. It is also important to bear in mind that if there are two nouns joined by a conjunction, a pronoun that refers to them must also agree in number correctly. Always make sure that you do not use pronouns excessively, as it may be confusing. Forms of expressing possession. When considering the forms of expressing possession, it is important to agree the possessive pronoun with the noun it refers to in number and not to use an apostrophe with it. However, when using the possessive case of a noun, the rules of using the apostrophe and an -s (-’s) must be strictly observed, so make sure you put it in the right place and only when it is necessary.

Are all the uncountable nouns in singular? Have I used correct determiners with singular countable nouns? Have I used correct auxiliaries and modal verbs? Does the subject agree with the predicate in person and number in all the sentences? Are there any pronouns which do not agree with nouns? Have I used the possessive forms correctly? •

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So, in order to avoid the mistakes, after you have finished your essay, proofread it and use the following checklist:

If the answers to these questions are positive – you are sure to have written your essay correctly, which is a great plus and your definite advantage over the other students. Who and Whom This one opens a big can of worms. “Who” is a subjective — or nominative — pronoun, along with “he,” “she,” “it,” “we,” and “they.” It’s used when the pronoun acts as the subject of a clause. “Whom” is an

objective pronoun, along with “him,” “her,” “it”, “us,” and “them.” It’s used when the pronoun acts as the object of a clause. Using “who” or “whom” depends on whether you’re referring to the subject or object of a sentence. When in doubt, substitute “who” with the subjective pronouns “he” or “she,” e.g., Who loves you? cf., He loves me. Similarly, you can also substitute “whom” with the objective pronouns “him” or “her.” e.g., I consulted an attorney whom I met in New York. cf., I consulted him. Which and That This is one of the most common mistakes out there, and understandably so. “That” is a restrictive pronoun. It’s vital to the noun to which it’s referring. e.g., I don’t trust fruits and vegetables that aren’t organic. Here, I’m referring to all non-organic fruits or vegetables. In other words, I only trust fruits and vegetables that are organic. “Which” introduces a relative clause. It allows qualifiers that may not be essential. e.g., I recommend you eat only organic fruits and vegetables, which are available in area grocery stores. In this case, you don’t have to go to a specific grocery store to obtain organic fruits and vegetables. “Which” qualifies, “that” restricts. “Which” is more ambiguous however, and by virtue of its meaning is flexible enough to be used in many restrictive clauses. e.g., The house, which is burning, is mine. e.g., The house that is burning is mine. Lay and Lie This is the crown jewel of all grammatical errors. “Lay” is a transitive verb. It requires a direct subject and one or more objects. Its present tense is “lay” (e.g., I lay the pencil on the table) and its past tense is “laid” (e.g., Yesterday I laid the pencil on the table). “Lie” is an intransitive verb. It needs no object. Its present tense is “lie” (e.g., The Andes mountains lie between Chile and Argentina) and its past tense is “lay” (e.g., The man lay waiting for an ambulance). The most common mistake occurs when the writer uses the past tense of the transitive “lay” (e.g., I laid on the bed) when he/she actually means the intransitive past tense of “lie” (e.g., I lay on the bed). Moot Contrary to common misuse, “moot” doesn’t imply something is superfluous. It means a subject is disputable or open to discussion. e.g., The idea that commercial zoning should be allowed in the residential neighborhood was a moot point for the council. Continual and Continuous They’re similar, but there’s a difference. “Continual” means something that’s always occurring, with obvious lapses in time. “Continuous” means something continues without any stops or gaps in between. e.g., The continual music next door made it the worst night of studying ever. e.g., Her continuous talking prevented him from concentrating. Envy and Jealousy The word “envy” implies a longing for someone else’s good fortunes. “Jealousy” is far more nefarious. It’s a fear of rivalry, often present in sexual situations. “Envy” is when you covet your friend’s good looks. “Jealousy” is what happens when your significant other swoons over your good-looking friend. Nor “Nor” expresses a negative condition. It literally means “and not.” You’re obligated to use the “nor” form if your sentence expresses a negative and follows it with another negative condition. “Neither the men nor the women were drunk” is a correct sentence because “nor” expresses that the women held the same negative condition as the men. The old rule is that “nor” typically follows “neither,” and “or” follows “either.”