Although life is not qualified by fluent English, you owe people a decent delivery when you speak or write. Here are 13 depressing mistakes people make recurrently, getting readers confused, breaking peoples heads and hearts, and shamefully revealing their ignorance.
1. ‘Your’ vs. ‘You’re’
“Your” is a possessive pronoun, while “you’re” is a contraction of “you are.”
Example: You’re pretty.
2. ‘It’s’ vs. ‘Its’
Normally, an apostrophe (‘) symbolizes possession, as in, “I took the dog’s bone.” But because apostrophes also replace omitted letters — as in “don’t” — the “it’s” vs. “its” decision gets complicated.
Use “its” as the possessive pronoun and “it’s” for the shortened version of “it is.”
Example 1: The dog chewed on its bone.
Example 2: It’s raining (It is raining).
3. ‘Then’ vs. ‘Than’
“Then” conveys time, while “than” is used for comparison.
Example 1: We left the party and then went home.
Example 2: We would rather go home than stay at the party.
4. ‘There’ vs. ‘They’re’ vs. ‘Their’
“There” is a location. “Their” is a possessive pronoun. And “they’re” is a contraction of “they are.”
Use them wisely.
5. ‘We’re’ vs. ‘Were’
“We’re” is a contraction of “we are” and “were” is the past tense of “are.”
6. ‘Affect’ vs. ‘Effect’
“Affect” is a verb and “effect” is a noun.
There are, however, rare exceptions. For example, someone can “effect change” and “affect” can be a psychological symptom.
Example: How did that affect you?
Example: What effect did that have on you?
7. ‘Two’ vs. ‘Too’ vs. ‘To’
“Two” is a number.
“To” is a preposition. It’s used to express motion, although often not literally, toward a person, place, or thing.
And “too” is a synonym for “also.”
8. ‘Into’ vs. ‘In To’
“Into” is a preposition that indicates movement or transformation, while “in to,” as two separate words, does not.
Example: We drove the car into the lake.
Example: I turned my test in to the teacher.
In the latter example, if you wrote “into,” you’re implying that you literally changed your test into your teacher.
9. ‘Alot’
“Alot” isn’t a word. This phrase is always two separate words: a lot.
10. ‘Who’ vs. ‘Whom’
Use “who” to refer to the subject of a sentence and “whom” to refer to the object of the verb or preposition. Shortcut: Remember that who does it to whom.
Example: Who ate my sandwich?
Example: Whom should I ask?
11. ‘Whose’ vs. ‘Who’s’
Use “whose” to assign ownership to someone and “who’s” as the contraction of “who is.”
Example: Whose backpack is on that table?
Example: Who’s going to the movies tonight?
12. ‘I’ vs. ‘Me’
Use “I” when you are the subject of a sentence and “me” when you are the object.
Example: John and I went to the store to buy some food.
Example: The cashier handed the groceries to John and me.
13. ‘Peak’ vs. ‘Pique’
Use “peak” when describing the highest point or maximum value and “pique” when you are talking about stimulating curiosity.
Example: I hiked to the peak of the mountain.
Example: The fascinating prior experience on her résumé piqued my interest.
Remember these tips when speaking or writing and you can say goodbye to the bad grammar days when people flinched when you said something or wrote to them.
Cheers!
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