4 Common Grammar Mistakes that English Language Courses Can Help You Avoid

When it comes to learning a new language, grammar is an essential part of understanding how it works. The English language can be complicated to learn, but as with any other language, it has certain grammar rules you can rely on to help guide you as you improve your fluency in your ESL courses.

Grammar is one of the most reliable tools you can use to learn English. It gives you firm guidelines on how to communicate and express yourself, and although it can be bent and experimented with in more creative writing, when you are learning the basics, it’s important to know where to start and how to avoid the most common mistakes. Read on to find out what you should watch for as you learn the English language.

Studying English Successfully Means Structuring Your Adjectives Correctly

Adjectives are a great tool to use in any language. They tell us about the object we’re looking at, help us communicate what we want, and allow us to identify certain things we like about people, places and objects.

In the English language, adjectives often come in a specific order that native speakers use without even realizing it. It’s important to remember that adjectives in English are typically used in this order: size, age, shape, colour, origin, material and purpose. For instance, the sentence “She wants a large, new, red bike,” sounds much more natural to an English speaker than “She wants a red, new, large bike”.

They’re, Their and There are Tricky Even for Native English Speakers

One of the most common mistakes made in the English language is the misuse of the words there, their and they’re. Even native speakers often confuse the three because they are all pronounced the same but are not spelled the same and do not mean the same thing grammatically. English courses can enhance your knowledge between the three, and there are some basic things you can remember to help keep them separate.

What is the best way to tell them apart?

• ‘There’ refers to a location, as in ‘The dog is over there’.
• ‘Their’ is possessive, and should be used with a noun, for instance ‘Their house is over there’.
• They’re is a contraction, which is a shorter form of saying “they are”, as in “They’re going to their house, which is over there.”

Subject-Verb Agreement Can Be Hard to Master in English Language Courses

For a sentence to make sense, the subject and the verb must match if they are singular or plural. This is known as subject-verb agreement. If the subject is singular, the verb must also be singular, and the same rules apply if they are plural.

For instance, saying “These three things was the best,” would be incorrect. Instead, make sure the subject and verbs match according to what you learn in your English language courses. The sentence should read “These three things are the best.”

Watch Out for Wordiness When You’re Trying to Learn English

Being wordy isn’t always a bad thing – it can mean you have a lot to express and are searching for the right way to do so. A common mistake among ESL students, however, is using many words when just one will do.

This may be because your native language uses many more grammatical descriptors than the English language, which favours simplified words and phrases, or because you can’t find the right word to express what you want to describe correctly. As you study English, ask yourself if you are using too many words to make the same point, or if you are just trying to fill a sentence with more information than you need to. While you learn a new language, the best thing to do is to keep it simple until you feel ready to use larger, more complicated grammar and vocabulary.

Are you interested in attending an English language school in Boston?

Contact ASC English for more information about our courses.