By Verbs, Common errors

Heck no, this is a term I learned from CJ and Marius. "Educated" people speak with very precisely correct (higher register) English. "Uneducated" people tend to use the vernacular and make many common errors, speaking in English of a lower register. (I don't know how...

Anonymous wrote: Hi, I usually edit some of the stuff my coworkers write around here, I believe I have good knowledge of what I'm doing but now I doubt it because of a document I'm reading right now... This is how it reads (in many paragraphs): "It is recommended that the agency review and...

Cool Breeze wrote: Goodman wrote:I'll say "sunjunctive".I agree.Of course it's not the subjunctive (but it should be). "Saw" is the simple past (indefinite preterite). This is a common error made by native english speakers in conjunction with the conditional.The subjunctive of any verb takes...

Hi Goodman“They were cordially welcome …” “You are cordially welcome” “His don’t-care attitude is not welcome here”.I'm quoting from Longman Dictionary of Common Errors.1. As mayor, I would like to welcome you all to our town.. Best wishes

Hi Goodman“They were cordially welcome …” “You are cordially welcome” “His don’t-care attitude is not welcome here”.I'm quoting from Longman Dictionary of Common Errors.1. As mayor, I would like to welcome you all to our town.. Best wishes

It was only 10 days ago that the accident happened. It is only 10 days since the accident happened. When the sentence has two clauses like this, and is viewed from the present time, ago is preceded by the simple past tense (was), and since by the present or present perfect tense (is, has been)....

Yes, effect can indeed be a verb. But the common error is when people say things like "How will this effect you?" when what they MEAN is "How will the affect you?" They also do the reverse - "You can see the affects of time on how this rock has eroded." (I believe that only the field of...

One of the most common errors for a language learner is to confuse grammar with meaning. Here we are discussing subject-verb concord, and the same meaning can be expressed with different grammar:A series of seminars was held.Several seminars were held.A couple of seminars were held.A brace of...

Pieanne wrote: I would have thought the preposition "at" requires a noun, hence "at any time"? "Anytime" is an adverb. "Call me anytime you want", but "call me at any time" This is correct, for the reason Pieanne gives. "At anytime" is a common error. The entry for "anytime" in M-W...

Hello CJ Thank you for the quick reply. The distinction between 'bring' and 'take' is really messy to us Japanese (who use the same verb for the both). Anyway it is interesting you use 'forget to take something' instead of 'forget to bring something' even in the case you are speaking in a place...