Some grammar mistakes are so widespread and so deeply ingrained in everyday speech that it can be easy not to even realize you’re making them. After all, if the most common grammar errors are being made by almost everyone you interact with on a daily basis, then it makes sense that you’ll end up making the very same mistakes without even being aware of it. If you want to stop making such errors and be certain that you won’t keep adding to your mistakes, it’s worth taking a look at a list of the most common mistakes that people unwittingly make.
Is There a Definitive List of Common Grammar Mistakes?
It’s certainly true that some grammatical errors are more common than others, and it’s also the case that native speakers tend to make different mistakes than second language speakers of English. Yet another source of what are perceived to be the most common grammar errors is the difference between the various varieties of English spoken around the world. To compile an exhaustive list of common grammar mistakes would be near impossible, but it’s very easy to come up with a set of errors that everyone hears on a daily basis. To avoid this, you can always check your online spell and grammar check.
To kick off our list of common grammar mistakes, we’ll begin with a set of homonyms that are frequently used mistakenly by everyone from a novice second language learner all the way to college students. The first set comprises the trio of “their”, “there” and “they’re”. Though it seems obvious to you when it’s pointed out, the similar pronunciation of these three leads people to mix them up without any encouragement at all. If you’re confused, you could always use a grammar checker or take a grammar course so that you’ll never mix up a third person possessive pronoun with a verb again.
Mistakes Almost Unique to Native Speakers
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There is one kind of error that makes it onto every list of common grammar mistakes, but funnily enough, you’ve probably never seen it written or heard it said by anyone except a native speaker. When you learn a second language, initially you will find yourself translating phrases directly into your mother tongue and back. You won’t necessarily be focusing on the pronunciation to the extent that it informs your spelling and indeed fundamental understanding of the language. This is not so for native speakers, so you’ll quickly find someone who writes and even says “could of” instead “could have”.
Some grammar mistakes are so pervasive that even the most highly educated of us still make them without even noticing. If you look closely, you’ll find plenty of extremely subtle grammatical slip-ups in scientific journals, instructional manuals and more. Unlike German and Russian, English has lost a significant portion of its grammar over the past few hundred years, which is incidentally why Russian in particular is so hard to learn for English speakers. We no longer make an effort to distinguish subjects, objects and all the other parts of sentences by changing the words themselves. Instead, we mostly rely on word order.
If you want to avoid such errors, you can choose some online grammar courses to pass!
While everyone knows that there are “ten mice” not “ten mouses”, there aren’t so many people who remember when to say “who” and when to say “whom”. In English, “who” takes the same place in the sentence as nominative pronouns like “he” and “she”, making it the subject of a clause. However, “whom” is used in the same places as “him” and “her”. When you think of it like this, it won’t take you very long at all to start naturally putting these words in the right places.
Avoid Making All the Most Common Errors
These mistakes are just the tip of the iceberg, so if you want to avoid making the most common grammar mistakes, then you would be wise to take a couple of online grammar lessons to make sure that you’ve got at least the basics covered.
Once you’ve gotten to grips with the most common grammar mistakes, you can make your way towards complete mastery of the English language and then the job or college place you’ve always wanted. You want to make the best first impressions when you submit your resume or college application, and good grammar is the best way to do it.
Take an online grammar course today and banish all those common grammar errors to the trashcan of history forever!
