1. Everything You Wanted to Know About English But Were Afraid to Ask

2. List of Common Errors- Part One

3. 1. a, an a: goes before a consonant sound an: goes before a vowel sound Example: –a boat –an hour

4. 2. accept, except accept: “to receive” except: “to leave out” Example: accepted –He accepted the award. except –Everyone got an A except Kate.

5. 3. affect, effect affect: (verb) “to influence” effect: (noun) “the result of an action” (verb) “to bring about” Example: –The loss of McNabb did not affect the Eagles. –The movie had great special effects.

6. 4. ain’t Not formal-avoid it when writing.

7. 5. already, all ready already=previously all ready=ready to go Example: –I already saw that movie. –The family was all ready to leave for vacation.

8. 6. all right alwaysall right is always two words alrightalright is not a word

9. 7. a lot a lot is always two words

10. 8. anyways, anywheres, everywheres, nowheres, somewheres Not words! No –s at the end!

11. 9. at Don’t use after where. Example: –Where is your pen at?

12. 10. bad, badly bad is an adjective. badly is an adverb. Example: –Those socks smell bad. (noun)(adj) –I did badly on the test. (verb) (adv)

13. 11. between, among Use between when referring to two things at a time. (Between has two ee’s.) Use among when referring to a group. Note: among and amongst have the same meaning. Example: –Steve sits between Lorin and Amanda. –We split the food among the three of us.

14. 12. bring, take bring=“to come carrying something” take=“to go carrying something” Example: –I will bring home takeout Chinese food.

15. 13. bust, busted Don’t use them as verbs. Use burst or break or catch or arrest. Example: –The teacher caught the lying student. (Not busted.)

16. 14. could of, should of, would of, might of, must of, ought to of All are incorrect! Use have instead. Example: –I should have studied.

17. 15. desert, dessert desert-think sand dessert-think yummy! (There are two S’s in dessert because you go back for seconds.)

18. 16. doesn’t, don’t doesn’t=does not don’t=do not Example: –He doesn’t know how to swim. (Not don’t.)

19. 17. et cetera Latin for “and so on”. etc. Not ect! Do not use it! It’s vague!

20. 18. farther, further farther=extent of physical distance. further=extent of time or degree. Example: –He throws the ball farther than Pete. –We’ll talk further tomorrow.

21. 19. fewer, less Use fewer with plural words. Use less with singular words. Example: –Fewer plants grow in the desert than in the tundra. –She needs less help than he does.

22. 20. good, well good-adjective well-adverb Example: –I did well on the quiz. (V)(adv) (Note: Well can be an adjective meaning “healthy.”) Example: I don’t feel well.

23. 21. had ought, hadn’t ought Don’t use had with ought. Example: –He ought to help us.

24. 22. hardly, scarcely They both have negative meaning. Don’t use them with another negative word (like not). Example: –I can hardly read this.

25. List of Common Errors- Part Two

26. 23. he, she, it, they Don’t use them after the subject. Example: –Scott he went to Six Flags.

27. 24. hisself Not a word. Use himself.

28. 25. how come, why How come is informal. Why is formal. Example: –How come I got a C?

29. 26. its, it’s An apostrophe with a pronoun is always a contraction! its=belonging to it it’s=it is Example: –It’s time for the dog to run on its own.

30. 27. kind, sort, type This, that, these, and those should agree in number with kind, sort, and type. Example: –He likes this kind of music, not those kinds.

31. 28. kind of, sort of They’re informal. Use somewhat or rather. Example: –I’m kind of hungry.

32. 29. learn, teach learn=to acquire knowledge teach=to instruct (give knowledge) Example: –Ms. Hoover is teaching me to not eat paste.

33. 30. leave, let leave=to go away let=to allow Example: –Let her go to the corner. (Not leave)

34. 31. lie, lay lie=to rest (does not take an object) lay=to put something in a place (takes an object) BasePresent Participle PastPast Participle lieis lyinglayhave lain layis layinglaidhave laid

35. lie, lay (continued) Example: –She laid the gloves on the desk. –When I got home, I lay down to sleep.

36. 32. imply, infer imply=to give a hint or suggestion infer=to take a hint or suggestion Example: –He implied that I had something in my teeth, and I inferred it.

37. 33. like, as if, though Like is often used where as if or though should be used. Example: –She behaved as if she hadn’t heard her name.

38. 34. may, can can=able to may=permission Example: –May I go to the bathroom? (Not can.)

39. 35. of Don’t use of after inside, off, and outside. Example: –Get off of the stage.

40. 36. real Don’t use real the same way you’d use very, really, or extremely. Example: –That test is extremely hard. (Not real.)

41. 37. reason…because Use reason…that instead. Example: –The reason I did well on the test was that I studied. (Not because.)

42. 38. rise, raise rise=to go up (doesn’t take an object) raise=to lift up (takes an object) BasePresent Participle PastPast Participle riseis risingrosehave risen raiseis raisingraisedhave raised

43. rise, raise (continued) Example: –The sun rises every morning. –My boss raised my salary ten percent. (Salary is the direct object of raised. That is, it is what is raised.)

44. 39. set, sit set=“to put something in a place” sit=“to rest in a chair” or “to be in a place” BasePresent Participle PastPast Participle setis settingsethave set sitis sittingsathave sat

45. set, sit (continued) Example: –Sit under that tree. –Set your backpack under the tree.

46. 40. some, somewhat Don’t use some for somewhat. Example: –My fever’s gone down somewhat.

47. 41. than, then Than is used for comparison. Then is used with time. (When? Then.) Example: –The Eagles are better than the Falcons. –I read my book then did my homework.

48. 42. their, there, they’re their=belonging to them there=a place (Where? There.) they’re=they are Example: –Their books are over there.

49. 43. theirself, theirselves Not words! Use themselves.

50. 44. them Don’t use them as an adjective. Example: –Put those cans in the trash.

51. 45. this here, that there Don’t use them together. Example: –Should I get that there shirt?

52. 46. try and Use try to instead. Example: –I’ll try to be on time.

53. 47. use to, used to, suppose to, supposed to Don’t leave off the –d when writing these. Example: –I used to live in Philadelphia.

54. 48. way, ways Use way (no –s) when referring to distance. Example: –We have a long way to go. (Not ways.)

55. 49. when, where Don’t use these words when writing a definition. Example: –An infomercial is where a TV show that is a long advertisement.

56. 50. where Don’t use where for that. Example: –I read that the Phillies lost. (Not where.)

57. 51. who, which, that They are all pronouns, but they are used to refer to different kinds of nouns. Who refers to people. Which refers to things. That refers to either people or things. If you’re not sure, use that. Example: –This is the ring that I want.

58. 52. who, whom who=subject whom=object (usually goes with or to) Example: –Who is that guy with the hook for the hand? –To whom should I give this money?

59. 53. who’s, whose who’s=who is or who has whose=ownership Example: –Whose pants are these? –Who’s there?

60. 54. without, unless Don’t use without for unless. Example: –I can’t go to the game unless I do my homework. (Not without doing.)

61. 55. your, you’re your=ownership you’re=you are Example: –You’re missing your homework.