10+ Common Grammatical Mistakes People Make while Speaking English

To be able to use English for daily conversation is not less than an achievement for all non-native English speakers, but in the process, one unknowingly makes a lot of common mistakes which shows a person’s incompetence.

Let’s study some of those common mistakes which you might also be making during the verbal communication.

We will be looking into the mistakes under some heading of English grammar so that you can get a better idea to practice it thoroughly and avoid making such mistakes. Down the line we have 10 different areas of English where you might be making mistakes, let’s discuss them one by one.

 

1. Mistakes while Using Tenses

This need not be told how extensively tenses are used in Spoken English. It is more likely that you make some minor mistakes like not using the right verbs or suitable auxiliary while speaking or writing English sentences. As tenses help us to identify the time of the action you should avoid making mistakes based on them. For example:

Incorrect:

I am going to school for the last 10 years.

Correct:

I have been going to school for the last ten years.

Incorrect:

I have came home.

Correct:

I have come home.

These types of minute mistakes can affect your expressions and make them sound a bit weird in some situations. To not make such mistakes, practice solving exercises and learn to speak sentences correctly.

Follow the link below and learn more about tenses: Click here

 

2. Sentence Formation Mistakes

Sentence formation plays a significant role in making you adept at using the right sentence structure according to the tenses. One should know how to frame a sentence and then try to speak. This is how things work and get better.

These mistakes are usually made by beginners because they do not practice framing sentences regularly, which is quite natural. If you are among them who make mistakes relating to sentence formation then work upon those and prevent yourself from doing it. Here are some examples:

Incorrect:

Because I am not good at sports, i will not taken part in the activity.

Correct: 

I will not take part in the activity because I am not good at sports.

One should remember a sentence never starts with because. Always try to use the subject first and then move on to the other parts of the sentence.

 

3. Incorrect Use of Subject-Verb Agreement

Subject-verb agreement plays an important role in framing sentences when it comes to communicating ideas in English. It is more likely that one makes a mistake while using and speaking English sentences related to this topic because it is one of the most confusing topics of English grammar. Now, if a Verb does not agree well with the subject, it sounds pretty odd to the audience and shows that your learning is still inadequate. These are some of the mistakes we make.

Incorrect:

Ram and Mohan plays cricket.

Correct:

Ram and Mohan play cricket.

Incorrect:

He like to play in the evening.

Correct:

He likes to play in the evening.

Incorrect:

Only one of the boys like to play cricket.

Correct:

Only one of the boys likes to play cricket.

One finds it difficult to identify such problems while speaking, but they exist and will eventually create problems for you in a long run. One should try to get a cure for this problem at the earliest to boost up their skills.

 

4. Incorrect use of Adjectives

We often overuse adjectives in a sentence while speaking. We should restrict ourselves to using limited adjectives in a sentence. We often use two degrees of comparison in a single sentence which sounds a little strange. Let’s take a look at some examples.

Incorrect:

The table that we saw yesterday was more lighter than this.

Correct:

The table that we saw yesterday was lighter than this.

These mistakes can only be avoided by practicing and listening to native speakers on a regular basis. Try doing it without a miss or the problems will still persist.

You can learn more about adjectives and quantifiers here.

 

5. Incorrect Use of Preposition

Another very important mistake we make while speaking English is the use of wrong prepositions in our sentences. Words like in, on, by, for, and at are often misplaced while using it in real-time practice and sound bad. For example:

Incorrect:

We are going to Agra on bus.

Correct:

We are going to Agra by bus.

Incorrect:

I am good in English.

Correct:

I am good at English.

Incorrect:

We are going to a hotel on dinner.

Correct:

We are going to a hotel for dinner.

Incorrect:

We are working in the project.

Correct:

We are working on a project.

Practice more prepositions and know about it in greater detail by following the link: Click here.

 

 

6. Incorrect Use of Articles in a Sentence

This is the most common mistake that one makes when one speaks English. The use of articles in a sentence talks about the number or specifies a particular thing in a sentence. One should be very careful while using articles like “a”, “an” or “the” in a sentence.

“A” is used to specify only one particular thing.

“An” on the other hand specifies the same, but it is used before vowel sounds only.

“The” is used to specify things that are only one in the entire universe like the sun, earth, etc.

Mistakes like these must be avoided when it comes to speaking sentences:

Incorrect:

The India is a very beautiful country.

Correct:

India is a beautiful country.

Note: One should never use the before any name whether it is a country or a person.

Click here to read more about the correct uses of articles in your sentences.

7. Mistakes while Introducing Yourself

Introduction specifies your understanding of yourself. A mistake in Introducing yourself affects your CV very badly.

Incorrect:

Myself so and so

Correct:

I am so and so would be correct.

Note: One should never introduce using myself. Use “I’m” while introducing yourself.

Practice speaking sentences by using the correct form only while Introducing.

8. Absence of polite tonal quality

There are different words when it comes to using English in day-to-day conversation as compared to Hindi. In Hindi, a dignified person or an elder person to you is addressed by “aap” and the younger one is addressed by “tum” but we only have “you” to address someone in English for both “tum” and “aap”. In that situation, one should speak in a more polite way than using something inappropriate.For example:

Incorrect:

I want you to check my work.

Correct:

Could you please check my work?

Incorrect:

Do this work on time.

Correct:

Kindly finish the work on time.

When you address someone politely, it makes a good impression and looks like a request and not an order.

9. Use of Have and Having

Have and having are two very different words. One signifies possession and the other means to be doing something in the present tense.

So, never use the wrong one while speaking or it would not make correct sense.

Incorrect: 

I am having a car.

Correct:

I own a car.

Incorrect: 

I am having the books.

Correct:

I have the books.

Learn to use have and in a more sound way by reading the blog related to this. Click here to know it better.

10. Narration mistakes

Narration refers to speaking someone else thoughts in your own words. Often while doing so we forget to change the pronoun and end up speaking wrong sentences. For example:

Incorrect:

He said to me that I will not come to the office today.

Correct:

He said to me that he would not come to the office that day.

The rules need to be kept in mind while doing narrations.

 

11. Incorrect Use of Punctuation Marks

Punctuation adds meaning to sentences and helps in making writing pieces better. Therefore, these punctuation marks should be used very carefully, or the sentences’ meaning will not be clear to the reader.

Most of us forget to use full stop (.), comma (,), question mark (?), exclamation mark (!) etc, in our sentences. This is not done deliberately. We often don’t know where to use commas and full stops. For example:

Incorrect:

Let’s eat Uncle Ray.

It would mean that you are going to eat your uncle, which is really not the case.

Correct:

Let’s eat, Uncle Ray.

Now, here, it is clear that the speaker is asking his/her uncle to eat.

This type of mistake can never be solved without practice. We can learn it by reading books or writing stories or practicing Spoken English. Moreover, we need to indulge into healthy writing practices which can help us learn better.

 

12. Overuse of Conjunctions

Conjunctions can also be named as joining words. Overuse of conjunctions makes sentences monotonous and complex to read. Instead, we should focus on using fewer conjunctions in a sentence. Using fewer conjunctions will make sentences short, and we can avoid making grammatical errors too.

We can overcome this shortcoming by thinking of shorter sentences in our mind. A phrasal verb can be the best alternative to writing more concise sentences. These verbs can make sentences attractive and readable at the same time.

 

What is the Best Alternative to Avoid All of These Mistakes?

The best alternative to avoid these mistakes is to join a Spoken English course and get yourself a mentor. An online English course can guide you better on every aspect of English grammar. Unless we are taught well on every front of English grammar, we will never be able to undo our mistakes. This happens because most of us are unaware of the many minute mistakes we make while expressing ourselves. Mentors help us out with our mistakes so that we don’t repeat them.

 

Conclusion

All these mistakes are the result of less practice and inadequate attention to studies.

In the absence of suitable guidance, one deviates from the learning path and does not practice with suitable attention.

This is where a course comes to your aid and defines the importance of what a big role it has to play in improving your day-to-day conversations.

Please don’t delay your practise anymore and get yourself enrolled in the combo course at AWALENGLISH.COM and eradicate all the errors that you might be unknowingly making while you speak.