Common English mistakes many people make

March 17, 2021 The Muse Drop 1 Comments

If you're reading this blog, you probably speak English - whether it's your first, second or third language.

There are some common mistakes that I often come across (sometimes I’m an English/grammar police so I have to refrain from pointing out these mistakes! That being said, I don't claim to be an expert in the English language.)

How many of these mistakes do you make on a daily basis?

1. They’re vs their vs there
They're - The contraction of THEY ARE.
Their - Belongs to someone - their name, their hair, their car.
There - The opposite of here - as in "over there".

2. You’re vs your
You're - The contraction of YOU ARE.
Your - Used to describe ownership - as in "this is yours".

An easy way to avoid this mistake at all costs is to put the words "you are" in a sentence. If it makes sense, it is you're and if it doesn't, it's your.

Example:
Is this your/you're phone?
Is this "you are" phone? = This doesn't make sense so you know it is incorrect!

3. It’s vs its
It's - The contraction of IT IS.
Its - Belongs to a person/thing.

An easy way to remember this is to use the word "it is" in your sentence and see if it makes sense.

Example:
Its/it's been forever!
"It is" been forever - This makes no sense so it is incorrect.

4. His vs he’s
His - Belongs to HIM.
He's - The contraction of HE IS.

Example
This is HIS chocolate (if you were tempted to say he's, ask yourself if the sentence "this is he is" chocolate makes sense).

5. You'll
This is the contraction of the word YOU WILL and not you all. if you want to use the word you all, it would be y’all.

6. Should’ve
The words should've stems from the contraction SHOULD HAVE and not should of. Basically the letters "H" and "A" are dropped in the contraction.

There term "should of" is completely incorrect.

7. Then vs than
Then - Relates to time.
Than - Used when comparing things.

8. Apostrophe usage
Noun is plural - No apostrophe (unless referring to possession - then the apostrophe is placed after the word)
Noun is singular - Apostrophe

Example:
This is my sister's house = This means that the house belongs to my sister.
This is my sisters’ house = This means that I have many sisters and the house belongs to all of them.

9. Worse vs worst
Bad, worse and worst.
Worse - Used when comparing things.
Worst - It's as bad as can be.

10. Incorrect usage of conjoining words like however/therefore

These words are basically used when you want to INTERRUPT a sentence so it HAS to be between commas (or at the beginning of a sentence, followed by a comma).

With the word "however", there are actually two meanings:
Meaning A: But
Meaning B: In whatever way as in "however you want to make the pasta".

Disclaimer: If you've seen any of these mistakes in my stories, it was pure oversight. I type whatever is in my head first and then I go through it to fix up all the mistakes.