COMMON MISTAKES IN USAGE
1. “Your” vs “You’re”
❌ Your welcome
✅ You’re welcome
👉 Explanation:
“You’re” = You are
Always expand it in your mind: You are welcome ✔
“Your” shows possession (your book, your pen).
2. “There”, “Their”, “They’re”
❌ Their going to school
✅ They’re going to school
👉 Explanation:
- There → place (There is a book)
- Their → possession (Their
house)
- They’re → They are
👉 Trick: Replace with they are and check.
3. “Its” vs “It’s”
❌ Its raining
✅ It’s raining
👉 Explanation:
- It’s = It is / It has
- Its = possession (The dog wagged its tail)
👉 Common mistake because we usually add apostrophe
for possession—but not here.
4. Subject–Verb Agreement
❌ She go to school
✅ She goes to school
👉 Explanation:
Singular subject → singular verb
“She” needs “goes” (not “go”).
❌ They is playing
✅ They are playing
👉 “They” is plural → use “are”.
5. Wrong Use of Tense
❌ I am knowing the answer
✅ I know the answer
👉 Explanation:
Some verbs (like know, believe, understand) are stative verbs—they
are not used in continuous form.
❌ He did not went there
✅ He did not go there
👉 After did, always use base form (go, eat,
come).
6. Double Negatives
❌ I don’t know nothing
✅ I don’t know anything
👉 Explanation:
Two negatives = wrong in standard English.
Use only one negative word.
7. “Much” vs “Many”
❌ Many water
✅ Much water
👉 Explanation:
- Much → uncountable (water, milk)
- Many → countable (books, students)
8. Wrong Prepositions
❌ Discuss about the issue
✅ Discuss the issue
👉 Explanation:
“Discuss” already includes the meaning of “about”—no need to add it.
❌ Married with her
✅ Married to her
👉 Fixed expression: married to
9. “Since” vs “For”
❌ I have been here since two hours
✅ I have been here for two hours
👉 Explanation:
- Since → starting point (since 5 pm)
- For → duration (for two hours)
10. Articles (a, an, the)
❌ He is a honest man
✅ He is an honest man
👉 Explanation:
Use an before vowel sound (honest → silent ‘h’ → vowel sound).
❌ Sun rises in east
✅ The sun rises in the east
👉 Use “the” for unique things (sun, moon, earth).
11. “Say” vs “Tell”
❌ He told that he is tired
✅ He told me that he was tired
✅ He said that he was tired
👉 Explanation:
- Tell → needs object (tell me, him, her)
- Say → no object needed
12. Word Order Mistakes
❌ I only ate two apples
✅ I ate only two apples
👉 Explanation:
“Only” should come before what it limits.
Wrong placement can change meaning.
13. Using “Very” instead of Strong Words
❌ Very tired
✅ Exhausted
👉 Explanation:
Using stronger words improves writing quality and avoids repetition.
14. “Borrow” vs “Lend”
❌ Can you borrow me your pen?
✅ Can you lend me your pen?
👉 Explanation:
- Borrow → take
- Lend → give
15. “Less” vs “Fewer”
❌ Less students
✅ Fewer students
👉 Explanation:
- Fewer → countable (students, books)
- Less → uncountable (water, time)
16. “Advice” vs “Advise”
❌ He adviced me
✅ He advised me
👉 Explanation:
- Advice → noun (give advice)
- Advise → verb (he advised me)
17. “Revert back” (Redundancy)
❌ Please revert back
✅ Please revert / reply
👉 Explanation:
“Revert” already means “return”—“back” is unnecessary.
18. Using “Myself” incorrectly
❌ Myself John
✅ I am John
👉 Explanation:
“Myself” is a reflexive pronoun, not used for introduction.
19. Redundant Expressions
❌ Return back
✅ Return
❌ Repeat again
✅ Repeat
👉 Explanation:
Avoid repeating the same meaning twice.
20. “Affect” vs “Effect”
❌ This will effect you
✅ This will affect you
👉 Explanation:
- Affect → verb (influence)
- Effect → noun (result)
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