COMMON ERRORS IN ENGLISH is the most wanted topic to be learnt by students, staff, job seekers and public speakers. Kindly share this presentation to all of your friends.

2. 1. Before a common noun used in its widest sense.
Eg.: Man is mortal.
2. Before names of materials.
Eg. : Bronze is a metal.
3. Usually before Proper names.
Eg.: Patna is the capital of Bihar.

3. 4.Before abstract nouns used in general sense.
(Beauty fascinates people.)
5. Before languages. [English is a very popular
language all over the world.]
6. Before names of relations like ‘father’, ‘mother’,
‘aunt’, ‘uncle’,’cook’,’nurse’ etc. [Father is very happy
today]
7. Before predicative nouns denoting a unique
position that is normally held at one time by one person
only. [He was elected Chairman of the Board.]

5. Incorrect Correct
1. Lecturership Lectureship
2. Free ship Free-studentship
3. Boarding Boarding house
4. Family members Members of the family
5. English teacher The Teacher of English
6. Cousin-brother/sister Cousin
7. Our’s/your’s/her’s/their’s Ours/yours/hers/theirs

6. 1. There are twenty candidates for lectureship.
2. Ramesh has applied for free-studentship.
3. Mohan lives in a boarding house.
4. Vivek and Suresh are the members of my family.
5. Dr,. Raina is our teacher of English.
6. Sudha is my cousin.
7. This lab is ours.

7. Some nouns always take a singular
verb
(Scenery, advice, mathematics, politics,
ethics, athletics, classics, fuel, rice, gram,
information, machinery, furniture, news ,
physics)
Examples:
1.The scenery of Kashmir is incorrect.
2.He has given advice. (not advices)
3.Mathematics is a difficult subject.

8. Some nouns have one meaning in
the singular and another in the
plural
Air – atmosphere air – proud
Quarter – one-fourth quarters – houses etc.
Examples:
1. Air is necessary for human life
2. It is bad to put on airs.
3. I live in the government quarters.

9. [people, clergy, cattle, gentry, company, police etc.]
Examples:
1.The clergy are in the church.
2.The cattle are grazing in the ground.

10. [Trousers, scissors, spectacles, stockings, tidings,
thanks, annals, measles, premises etc.]
Examples:
1.Where are my trousers?
2.Spectacles are now a costly item.

11. Collective Nouns are used both as
singular and plural depending on
the meaning.
[jury, public, team, committee, government, audience,
orchestra, company]
*********
Examples:
1. The jury were divided in this case.
2. The team has not come as yet.

12. One must finish his task in time. [Incorrect]
One must finish one’s task in time. [correct]
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A pronoun must agree with its antecedent in person,
number and gender.
Examples:
Every man must bring his luggage.
All students must do their home work.
Each of the girls must carry her own bag.

13. When Two or more singular nouns are joined
together by:
1. ‘either….. Or’
2. ‘neither nor’
and
3. ‘or’, the pronoun is singular.

14. Either Ram or Shyam will give their book. [ Incorrect]
Either Ram or Shyam will give his book.[correct]
Neither Ramesh nor Rajendra has done their work. (IC]
Neither Ramesh nor Rajendra has done his work. [C]

15. Few, a few, and the few
Few : not many
A few : some atleast. [positive] opposite of none.
The few : whatever there is.
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Examples
1. Few men are free from fault. (not A few men)
2. A few boys will pass in the examination. (not Few
boys)
3. I have already read the few books that are on the
book shelf. ( not a few books)

17. Examples:
1. Shelley is junior than Wordsworth. (Incorrect)
Shelley is junior to Wordsworth, (Correct)
-------------------------------------------------------------
2. I prefer reading than sleeping. (Incorrect)
I prefer reading to sleeping. (Correct)

19. Examples:
1. Ram, as well as his ten friends, are going.
(Incorrect)
Ram, as well as his ten friends, is going. (Correct)
----------------------------------------------------------------------
2. The teacher, along with the students, were going.
(Incorrect)
The teacher, along with the students, was going.
(Correct)

20. If the Subject is:
1. ‘a number of’ – the plural verb is used
Eg.: A number of books are missing (Correct)
A number of books is missing. (Incorrect)
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2. The number of – the singular verb is used.
Eg.:
The number of students are very small. (Incorrect)
The number of students is very small. (Correct)

21. • What to speak of 1. Not to speak of
• Cent per cent 2. Hundred percent
• Word by word 3. Word for word
• The two first 4. The first two
• Examples:
• Not to speak of running, he cannot even walk.
• You are never hundred per cent sure of your success in
a competitive examination.

22. COMMON ERRORS to be avoided
Care should b e taken in the use of VERBS.
An infinitive verb should not be split.
‘Only’ should be placed immediately before the word
it qualifies.
Eg.: Only he lost his ticket in the train.
INCORRECT –He only lost his ticket in the train.)

23. THAN should be used after ‘no other’.
Example: I met no other man than Mr. Raju. (not BUT)
HOW (or) WHEN should be used after ‘know’
Examples:
Correct :I know how to write French.
Incorrect : I know to write French.

24. S.No. Word(s)
FOLLOWED
BY
What
1. Many a Singular verb
2. A great many A plural NOUN and
a plural VERB
3. Thought Yet
4. Not But
5. No sooner Than
6. Lest Should
7. Such As
8. So That
9. Scarcely when
10. Hardly Not by than

25. EXAMPLES
Many a man was drowned in the sea. (Not WERE)
A great many students have been declared successful.
(not HAS)
Though he is poor, yet he is honest. (not BUT)
No sooner had I entered the class than the students stood
up. (not WHEN)
Read regularly lest you should fail. (not WILL/SHALL)

26. • He is such a writer as everybody should read his books. (not
THAT)
•Sarita was so popular with her classmates that she always
had some people coming to her for advice. (not AS)
• I had scarcely entered the room when the phone rang. (not
THAN)

27. Know these also….
1. Who The Subject
2. Whom
Denotes
The Object
3. Whose Living persons
4. Which Lifeless Objects
5. Each other If there are 2
Subjects/Objects
6. One another More than 2
Subjects/Objects
7. Less (Five litres of
water)
Quantity
8. Fewer (No fewer than
fifty persons)
Number
9. Older (followed by than)
Refers Persons (as well as
things)
10. Elder Members of the
family
11.
When Indicates A general sense
12.
While A Time during
the process of

28. Some is used to express QUANTITY/DEGREE
(affirmative)
Eg: I shall buy some apples.
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Any is used in NEGATIVE/INTERROGTATIVE
Sense.
Examples:
1.I shall not buy any apples.
2.Have you bought any apples?

29. S.No. UNLESS/UNTIL
/Not
Expresses/
never used
with
what?
1. Unless Expresses
(Negative
sense)
A
condition
2. Until Time
3. Not Is never
used with
Unless/
Until

30. He not only comes for swimming but also for
coaching the learners. (INCORRECT)
He comes not only for swimming but also for coaching
the learners. (CORRECT)
This expression is meant for swimming and not for
coming.

31. One of…..
One of always takes a plural noun after it
Eg. : It is one of the important day in my life. [IC]
It is one of the important days in my life. [C]
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When TWO Singular Nouns joined by ‘and’ point out the
same thing or person, the verb will be SINGULAR.
IC: Bread and butter make a good breakfast.
C : Bread and butter makes a good breakfast.

32. EITHER…OR, NEITHER…NOR
If two subjects are joined by ‘either….or’, ‘neither…
nor’,, the VERB agrees with the SUBJECT that is
near.
Examples:
 Either Ramesh or I am to do this work. (not ARE)
Neither he nor his friends are reading. (not IS)