I spend at least a quarter of my classroom time on common mistakes. Not because my students are careless, but because English is full of traps — rules that seem logical until you hit the exceptions, patterns that almost work, ambiguities that native speakers navigate on instinct. The most frustrating part? These mistakes don’t just affect grades; they undermine credibility. A job application with a subject-verb agreement error might land in the rejection pile before anyone reads your qualifications.
Below, I’ve collected the ten most persistent mistakes I see across every proficiency level — from beginner to advanced learner. For each error, you’ll find the mistake explained, corrected examples, and the rule behind it. By the end, you’ll have a mental checklist to catch these errors in your own writing before they reach an audience.
Key Takeaways
- Subject-verb agreement — the verb must match the subject’s person and number; “There are…” not “There is…”
- Verb tense consistency — use present perfect for actions “since” a time; “I have been working since 6 am” not “I was working.”
- Article confusion — use articles carefully with proper nouns (“I live in London,” not “I live in the London”).
- Singular vs. plural nouns — “homework” is uncountable; use singular verb (“My homework is done,” not “My homeworks are done.”).
- Pronoun reference errors — every pronoun needs a clear antecedent; “When Jamie met Alex, she…” is ambiguous if we don’t know who “she” is.
The Top 10 Common English Mistakes
1. Subject-Verb Agreement Errors
The Error: The verb does not match the subject’s number (singular vs. plural) or person (first, second, third).
✗ Incorrect: “Even though this is my first day on the job, I have already found out that there was some difficult people here.”
✓ Correct: “Even though this is my first day on the job, I have already found out that there were some difficult people here.”
Why: The subject is “people” (plural), so the verb must be “were,” not “was.” A common trick: sentences starting with “There is/are” often trip up learners. Ask yourself: “What is the actual subject?” Here, it’s “people.”
More Examples:
Example 1 — ✗: “The team are preparing for the match.” (American English expects singular; British allows plural)
Example 1 — ✓: “The team is preparing for the match.” (Standard in American English)
Example 2 — ✗: “Each of the students have completed their homework.”
Example 2 — ✓: “Each of the students has completed his or her homework.” (Each = singular)
Rule: Singular subjects (he, she, it, singular nouns) take singular verbs (-s or -es). Plural subjects (they, plural nouns) take plural verbs (no -s). The subject may be far from the verb, but the rule stays the same.
2. Verb Tense Errors
The Error: Using the wrong tense for the time reference, especially mixing present and past or misusing perfect tenses.
✗ Incorrect: “I was working on my paper since 6:00 am.”
✓ Correct: “I have been working on my paper since 6:00 am.”
Why: “Since” indicates a duration extending from the past to now. You need present perfect, not simple past. Simple past (“was working”) suggests the action finished. Present perfect (“have been working”) shows the action started in the past and continues now.
More Examples:
Example 1 — ✗: “She worked here for five years.”
Example 1 — ✓: “She has worked here for five years.” (If she still works there now)
Example 2 — ✗: “After he finished his homework, he watches TV.”
Example 2 — ✓: “After he finished his homework, he watched TV.” (Past, then past; consistent timeline)
3. Verb Form Errors (Gerund vs. Infinitive)
The Error: Using the wrong verb form — infinitive (to-form) instead of gerund (-ing) or vice versa.
✗ Incorrect: “I was cook dinner last night when you called.”
✓ Correct: “I was cooking dinner last night when you called.”
Why: After “was,” you need a present participle (-ing form), not a bare infinitive.
More Examples:
Example 1 — ✗: “She enjoys to read novels.”
Example 1 — ✓: “She enjoys reading novels.” (Enjoy + gerund)
Example 2 — ✗: “He promised helping me tomorrow.”
Example 2 — ✓: “He promised to help me tomorrow.” (Promise + infinitive)
4. Singular/Plural Noun Errors
The Error: Confusion about which nouns are countable (can be plural) and which are uncountable (remain singular).
✗ Incorrect: “I have turned in all my homeworks this week.”
✓ Correct: “I have turned in all my homework this week.”
Why: “Homework” is uncountable. You don’t say “three homeworks”; you say “three assignments” or “three pieces of homework.” Similarly: information, advice, equipment, luggage, furniture, and knowledge are uncountable in English.
More Examples:
Example 1 — ✗: “I need some good advices on this matter.”
Example 1 — ✓: “I need some good advice on this matter.” (Or: “I need some helpful suggestions.”)
Example 2 — ✗: “The furnitures in her room are modern.”
Example 2 — ✓: “The furniture in her room is modern.” (Uncountable; use singular verb)
5. Article Errors (The, A, An)
The Error: Leaving out articles when they’re needed, or adding articles where they don’t belong — especially with proper nouns and generalizations.
✗ Incorrect: “I live in the Mumbai.”
✓ Correct: “I live in Mumbai.”
Why: Proper nouns (names of specific people, cities, countries) usually don’t take “the” unless they’re plural (the Philippines, the United States) or refer to a specific region (the Middle East). “Mumbai” is a singular proper noun, so no article.
More Examples:
Example 1 — ✗: “The Shakespeare wrote beautiful sonnets.”
Example 1 — ✓: “Shakespeare wrote beautiful sonnets.” (Proper noun; no article)
Example 2 — ✗: “I need a information about the flights.”
Example 2 — ✓: “I need some information about the flights.” (Information is uncountable; use “some”)
Example 3 — ✗: “Dogs are loyal animals.” ✓ (Generalizations about plurals don’t need articles)
6. Pronoun Reference Ambiguity
The Error: A pronoun (he, she, it, they) doesn’t clearly refer to its antecedent, creating confusion.
✗ Incorrect: “When Jamie met Alex, she was excited.”
✓ Correct: “When Jamie met Alex, Jamie was excited.” (Or: “When Jamie met Alex, Jamie’s excitement was obvious.”)
Why: The pronoun “she” could refer to either Jamie or Alex, making the sentence ambiguous. Use the actual name or restructure to clarify.
More Examples:
Example 1 — ✗: “Sarah told her mother that she needed help.”
Example 1 — ✓: “Sarah told her mother that Sarah needed help.” (Or: use active voice: “Sarah asked her mother for help.”)
7. Misplaced or Dangling Modifiers
The Error: A modifying phrase doesn’t clearly connect to the word it modifies, creating unintended or humorous meanings.
✗ Incorrect: “Driving down the highway, the scenery was beautiful.”
✓ Correct: “Driving down the highway, I noticed the beautiful scenery.”
Why: The opening phrase “Driving down the highway” modifies the subject, but “the scenery” doesn’t drive. The subject should be a person or agent doing the driving.
More Examples:
Example 1 — ✗: “After finishing dinner, the dessert menu arrived.”
Example 1 — ✓: “After finishing dinner, we saw the dessert menu.”
8. Double Negatives
The Error: Using two negative words in one clause, which either creates confusion or (in some dialects) negates the negation unintentionally.
✗ Incorrect: “I don’t have no money .”
✓ Correct: “I don’t have any money .” (Or: “I have no money.”)
Why: Standard English uses one negative per clause. Two negatives together (don’t + no) create a non-standard construction that confuses meaning.
More Examples:
Example 1 — ✗: “He isn’t going to no conference.”
Example 1 — ✓: “He isn’t going to any conference.” (Or: “He is going to no conference.”)
9. Comma Splice
The Error: Joining two independent clauses with only a comma (no coordinating conjunction or punctuation mark).
✗ Incorrect: “She completed the project, she submitted it on time.”
✓ Correct (Option 1): “She completed the project; she submitted it on time.” (Semicolon)
✓ Correct (Option 2): “She completed the project, and she submitted it on time.” (Comma + conjunction)
✓ Correct (Option 3): “She completed the project. She submitted it on time.” (Period; two sentences)
10. Confusing Similar Words (Commonly Confused Pairs)
The Error: Mixing up words that sound similar but have different meanings.
Common pairs:
Their / There / They’re:
✗: “Where is there dog?” / “Their going to the park.”
✓: “Where is their dog?” / “They’re going to the park.”
Its / It’s:
✗: “The company lost it’s license.”
✓: “The company lost its license.” (Possessive)
Affect / Effect:
✗: “How will this effect your decision?”
✓: “How will this affect your decision?” (Verb: affect = to change; noun: effect = the result)
Student: But I don’t make these mistakes when I speak. Why do they happen in writing?
Teacher: Great observation! Speaking is faster; we rely on context and tone. Writing is permanent and isolated, so errors stand out. We also write differently than we speak — more formally, with more complex sentences. Mistakes become visible at that level of complexity.
Student: So how do I catch them?
Teacher: Read your work aloud slowly. Ask someone else to read it. Use a grammar checker as a second set of eyes. Most importantly, focus on the patterns you personally make. Everyone has different trouble spots.
Common Mistakes in Context: A Worked Example
Original (contains multiple errors):
“Even though I was working on my assignments since morning, there was many distractions in my apartment. My advices to students is to study in library where its quiet and there phones are off.”
Errors identified:
- “was working” → should be “have been working” (tense for actions since a time)
- “there was” → should be “there were” (subject-verb agreement with “distractions”)
- “advices” → should be “advice” (uncountable noun)
- “its” → should be “it’s” (contraction of “it is”)
- “there phones” → should be “their phones” (possessive pronoun)
Revised (corrected):
“Even though I have been working on my assignments since morning, there were many distractions in my apartment. My advice to students is to study in a library where it’s quiet and their phones are off.”
Notice how the corrected version reads more smoothly and professionally.
How to Avoid These Mistakes
- Proofread out loud. Reading aloud helps you catch awkward phrasing and missing words your eyes might skip.
- Use a grammar checker. Tools like Grammarly, Hemingway Editor, or Word’s built-in grammar check catch many of these automatically.
- Know your patterns. Keep a list of the mistakes you personally make often — we all have patterns.
- Read native writers. Exposure to correct English improves your ear for what sounds right.
- Slow down. Mistakes cluster in rushed writing. Give yourself time to revise.
Quick Quiz: Spot the Error
- Which sentence is correct? (a) “There is ten people here.” (b) “There are ten people here.” (c) Both are acceptable (d) Neither is correct
- Choose the correct form: “She ________ worked here for three years.” (a) was (b) has (c) has been (d) is
- Which is correct? (a) “My homeworks are due tomorrow.” (b) “My homework is due tomorrow.” (c) Both are acceptable (d) Neither is correct
- Identify the error: “Driving to work, the radio was playing.” (a) Subject-verb agreement (b) Dangling modifier (c) Pronoun reference (d) No error
- Which is correct? (a) “I don’t have no money.” (b) “I don’t have any money.” (c) Both are acceptable (d) Neither is correct
Answers: 1. (b) — “Ten people” is plural; needs “are” · 2. (c) — “has been working” for a duration to now · 3. (b) — homework is uncountable · 4. (b) — “the radio” doesn’t drive; needs a person as subject · 5. (b) — double negatives are non-standard
Related Articles
- Verb Tenses in English: Past, Present, and Future
- ↑ Back to pillar: English Writing (Pillar)
Frequently Asked Questions
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