The 20 Most Common Errors:
- Missing comma after an introductory element-
In English[,] words are capitalized at the beginning of a sentence. - Vague pronoun reference-
Before the professor helped Mike, he had lunch.
[Who does he refer to…the professor or Mike?] - Missing comma in a compound sentence (using and, but, so, yet, nor, or for)-
He does not play football[,] nor does he play baseball. - Wrong word (using homonyms, words that sound alike, or words with a wrong meaning)-
The two boys went to there house.
["There"—a place pronoun-- is used in stead of "their"—the correct plural possessive pronoun] - Missing comma(s) with a nonrestrictive element-
Bob[,] the graduate assistant[,] collected the papers.
[there should be commas around the extra descriptive clause that adds to, but it not necessary for, the complete meaning of the sentence] - Wrong or missing verb ending-
Mrs. Jones pick the kids up from school. [missing an ed on the end of the verb, picked up] - Wrong or missing preposition-
We met in Union Street at San Francisco. [Should be on Union Street in S.F.; prepositions are often easily confused by non-native English speakers, as well as deaf and hard-of-hearing students] - Comma splice-
The students always jump in the lake before the big game, it is a tradition.
[Two complete sentence units are spliced together with only a comma since both sides of the sentence in relation to the comma contain subjects and verbs. Should be: Jumping in the lake before the big game is a student tradition. Or: The students always jump in the lake before the big game; it is a tradition.] - Missing or misplaced possessive apostrophe-
Amys' dress was white.
[apostrophe is placed wrong. Should be: Amy's dress was white.] - Unnecessary or wrong shift in verb tense-
We went to the movie and laugh a lot. [Tense shifts from first verb in past tense—went—to second one in present tense—laugh. Sentence should read: We went to the movie and laughed a lot. Or, We go to the movie and laugh a lot.] - Unnecessary shift in pronoun-
Wait until you read the book, one will be surprised.
[Prounoun shifts from second person—you—to third person formal—one. Sentence would read better as: Wait until you read the book, you will be surprised. Or: When one reads the book, one will be surprised.] - Sentence fragment-
I bought a car. Runs very fast.
[Sentences must have both a subject and a verb. The second sentence—runs very fast—has no subject. It should read: It runs very fast.] - Wrong tense or verb form-
Children have broke furniture in the store. [The wrong verb tense is used: should be have broken] - Lack of subject-verb agreement-
One of my goals in life are to have a family.
[If the subject of the sentence is singular, the verb must also be a singular form; if the subject of the sentence is plural, the verb must also then be in plural form. The sentence should read: One of my goals in life is to have a family—because the subject is singular (one of my goals).] - Missing comma in a series-
The instructor asked Jody, Kathy, Ben, and the other seniors to stay after class. - Lack of agreement between pronoun and antecedent-
The class complained that their room was hot.
[If the original noun is singular, the pronoun should also be singular; if original noun is plural, the pronoun should also then be plural. Here the noun the class is confused as a plural noun—probably because it takes several students/members to create a class; however, class is itself a singular noun. The sentence should read: The class complained that its room was hot.] - Unnecessary comma(s) with a restrictive element-
Shakespeare's tragedy, Othello, deals with the dangers of jealousy.
[The sentence can stand alone without the commas to set apart the name of the play.] - Fused sentence (or run-on sentence)-
The books were heavy he could not carry them home where he would study. [There are two sentences fused together—2 sets of subjects and verbs. Writers often fuse sentences like this by only using a comma between them. This specific error is called a comma splice. The sentences should read: The books were heavy. He could not carry them home, where he would study. - Misplaced or dangling modifier-
Mike knew he wanted to be a meteorologist when he was five.
[The phrase when he was five at the end of the sentence actually refers to Mike, the subject of the sentence (not the noun it is placed closest to—meteorologist. The sentence should read: When he was five years old, Mike knew he wanted to be a meteorologist. - Its/It's confusion-
The cat played with it's ball. [Its is a possessive third person pronoun—akin to his or hers; it's is a contraction of it is. The sentence should read: The cat played with its ball.
