Common Misspelling/Grammar Mistakes in English
Misspelling/Grammar Mistakes is a very stupid error in a presentation, thesis. The reason you should review this list is because a spell checker won’t correct these for you.There are some grammar mistakes that are very common, that you'll see over and over. Fortunately, these mistakes are easy to fix, once you become aware of them.
Common Grammar Mistakes in English
- It’s vs. Its
Look out for this common grammar mistake. Spell check isn’t going to catch it, and it’s easy to miss if you’re typing too fast and not proofreading your work carefully.This is one of the most common grammar mistakes I see. It’s is the conjugation of “it” and “is.” Its is possessive, meaning it represents ownership. If you are ever uncertain which form to use, replace the word with “it is.” If “it is” makes sense, use it’s; if “it is” doesn’t make sense, use its.”Example
It’s frustrating to feel like a cat chasing its own tail in circles. - Loose vs. Lose
Look out for this common grammar mistake. Spell check isn’t going to catch it, and it’s easy to miss if you’re typing too fast and not proofreading your work carefully.
Example: I always loose the product key. (wrong)
I always lose the product key. (Correct) - To, Too and Two
Okay, not too many people mess up two, but to and too are mixed up frequently. Too is another word for “also.” To is a preposition that typically indicates movement.
Example
Are you going to the beach with the two of us this weekend too? - Whose vs. Who’s
This is a pretty easy one to understand. Whose is the possessive of who. Who's is a contraction of “who is.”
Example
Who’s going to determine whose marketing textbook that is? - Effect vs. Affect
“Affect” is a verb, as in “Your ability to communicate clearly will affect your income immensely.” “Effect” is a noun, as in “The effect of a parent’s low income on a child’s future is well documented.” By thinking in terms of “the effect,” you can usually sort out which is which, because you can’t stick a “the” in front of a verb. While some people do use “effect” as a verb (“a strategy to effect a settlement”), they are usually lawyers, and you should therefore ignore them if you want to write like a human.
Example
How did the network marketing seminar affect us? The seminar had very little effect on how we operate our business. - Were – Where – We’re
Where in the world were you? We were at Billy’s and we’re staying for another day. Make sure your blog visitors do that too. - There – Their – They’re
"They" and "their" are plural pronouns, not singular ones. Someone often use 'they' and 'their' as generic singular pronouns because they want to avoid using 'he' and 'his,' which are male pronouns, to refer to people generally.
So the following sentence isn't grammatically correct: "A person who cares only about their own happiness will not achieve happiness."
"A person" is a singular pronoun, whereas "their" and "they" are plural pronouns. - Then vs. than
Then is used to indicate a time "I close the door then I lock it by my key" or to introduce the consequent in an "if...then..." phrase "If death is annihilation, then it is nothing either to the living or to the dead". Than is used to make comparisons ("I am taller than her"). - I.e. vs. e.g.
I.e. is an abbreviation that means that is
E.g. is an abbreviation that means for instance, or such as.
This is a huge pet peeve of mine, because it seems that even successful journalists and other career writers get confused between i.e. and e.g.! Sometimes, however, i.e. and e.g. are actually interchangeable, but only if you are using them in the context of a finite versus non-finite list. - The prefixes “un-,” “non-,” “in-,”and “ir-” all negate the root word, but you can’t just add them to any root word you want.
There is only one correct prefix option for each word. And yes, you do need to memorize them… here are a few you can start with:
Unpleasant. Not “inpleasant,” “nonpleasant,” or “irpleasant.” Unreliable. Not “inreliable,” “irreliable,” or “nonreliable.”
Irreversible. Not “unreversible,” “nonreversible,” or “inreversible.” Irrational. Not “unrational,” “inrational,” or “nonrational.”
Noncommittal. Not “uncommittal,” “incommittal,” and certainly not “ircommittal.”
Indecent. Not “undecent,” “irdecent,” or even “nondecent.”
If you don’t know which prefix goes with which root word, well then… I guess you’re just shit outta luck. It might help to sound out the word in your head and figure out which letters probably represent that sound best. - Who's vs. whose, and you're vs. your
The word who's is always a contraction for who is or who has. The possessive form of the pronoun who is whose, not who's. You're is always a contraction of you are, and the possessive form of you is your.
Example
You won’t attain your goals unless you’re committed to success.
Who’s going to determine whose marketing textbook that is? - Who vs. Whom
Honestly, I even have trouble keeping these pronouns straight, and I don’t think most people notice when this common grammar mistake is made. But, it’s still important to try and use them properly. Use who when referring to the subject of a clause and whom when referring to the object of a clause.
Here’s a quick tip to help you remember this one. When choosing between who and whom, ask yourself if the answer to the question would be he or him. If you can answer the question with him, use whom (remember they both end with “m”).Example
Who wants to achieve financial success? In whom should we invest our time to provide success coaching? - Good vs. Well
“Good” is an adjective and “well” is an adverb.
He is a good works. <> He works well.
It is incorrect to say “He works good.” Adjectives describe nouns. Adverbs describe verbs. In this sentence, the word “works” is used as a noun in the first sentence, warranting an adjective… and a verb in the second sentence, calling for an adverb. - Which vs. That
Often it seems like which and that are interchangeable, but usually they are not. That introduces essential clauses and which introduces nonessential clauses.An essential clause can't be omitted without changing the meaning of a sentence, so it shouldn't be set off with commas. Any clause introduced with that is an essential clause and uses no comma.A nonessential clause can be left out without changing the basic meaning of the sentence, so it should be set off with commas. The words which and "who" often introduce nonessential clauses.Example
The website, which is about sales techniques, is very informative. This is a subject that is important for all multi-level marketers to understand. - Assure, Ensure and Insure
Assure, ensure and insure basically mean the same thing: to guarantee or promise something. However, there are minor differences between them. Assure means to say or write the guarantee. Ensure means to take an action to make sure or guarantee that something happens. Insure means to guarantee something with insurance or other financial means.Example
She assured us the Renegade Network Marketer would ease our frustrations in building our downline. So, we purchased the ebook to help ensure we would succeed with our MLM opportunity. Unfortunately, there is no way to financially insure our success, so we must put in the time and effort to build our business. - Can not vs.Cannot
Cannot should be one word, not two. If you say "Laura cannot sing well," you mean that Laura is unable to sing well. If you say "Laura can not sing well," you mean that Laura is able to refrain from singing well. - Bring vs Take
When we go to the party on Saturday, let’s bring a bottle of wine.
This is INCORRECT.
When you are viewing the movement of something from the point of arrival, use “bring”. When you are viewing the movement of something from the point of departure, use “take”:
When you come to the party, please bring a bottle of wine.
When we go to the party, let’s take a bottle of wine. - Mis-use and abuse of semicolons—Semicolons are used to separate two related independent clauses or to separate items in a list that contains commas. Do not abuse semicolons by using them often. They are best used sparingly.
- Confusing singular possessive and plural nouns—Singular possessive nouns always take an apostrophe, with few exceptions, and plural nouns never take an apostrophe. Omitting an apostrophe or adding one where it does not belong makes the sentence unclear.
- Lack of proofreading—Spell and grammar check do not catch everything, and they are not a replacement for good old fashioned proofreading. These tools do not distinguish between the correct and incorrect use of correctly spelled words, such as "where" and "were." Always proofread yourself.
Common Misspelling/Grammar Mistakes in English that can detract from your credibility. While we all hope what we have to say is more important than some silly grammatical error, the truth is some people will not subscribe or link to your blog if you make dumb mistakes when you write, and buying from you will be out of the question.
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