Common Mistakes Even Good English Speakers Make

To be a successful communicator, you need clear, accurate English. However, we all make mistakes, even English teachers like me. Some people might warn you, never say this in English. But in reality, non-standard English sometimes comes out, even when we don't intend to use it. Hi, I'm Jennifer. In this video, I'll make you aware of common mistakes you should generally try to avoid. But don't beat yourself up if you make them. Keep studying, keep practicing to attain greater accuracy. Strong communicators aren't perfect, but they're consistent in expressing themselves clearly and accurately. The first kind of mistake happens because words sound the same. There are a lot of similar-sounding words in English. When I type too fast, I mix up common words like your and your, and there and there. Remember to proofread what you write. Grammar and spellchecks should help you catch those kinds of typos before you send an email or submit an essay. Here's a mistake people don't always recognize. People mix up effect and effect. They can sound the same in spoken English. The first, with an A, always starts with a schwa sound, a. The second word, which is written with an E, is usually said with a short I sound, i, effect. But sometimes American English speakers will use a schwa, a, effect, or even a long E, e, effect. So you might hear effect, effect, effect. Check out my videos on words with pronunciation variations to gain more awareness. I'll put the links in the video description. Remember that effect is a verb that means influence. For example, the weather can affect our mood. Effect is most often used as a noun to refer to an outcome or a result. For example, we can discuss the negative effects of too much screen time. As a verb, we can affect change, which means we cause it to happen. Try this quick quiz. Choose the correct word. 1. The new policy had an immediate on productivity across the department. We need a noun referring to result, an immediate effect. 2. The company's decision to reduce remote work options will likely employee satisfaction. We need a verb that means influence, effect. 3. The board hopes to... Meaningful changes before the end of the fiscal year. The board hopes to cause these changes. The board hopes to effect meaningful changes. The second kind of common mistake has to do with quantities. It helps to study and practice countable and uncountable nouns in English. So check out my grammar playlist. You need to build awareness and familiarity with these concepts so that you can choose determiners like articles and quantifiers. Determiners go before nouns so that we can accurately refer to people and things. Articles are a, an, the, and the zero article. Quantifiers answer the question how much or how many. They include words like much and many. So what's the mistake? In everyday conversation, people mix up words like fewer and less. It's a minor mistake, so it usually doesn't cause confusion. However, you should know that fewer is used with countable nouns and less is used with uncountable nouns. Take this short quiz. Choose the correct words to complete the sentences. 1. Thanks to online banking, people carry... Can we count coins and bills? Yes, we can. So people carry fewer coins and bills. 2. People are using bottled water now that we know about the dangers of microplastics. Can we count people? Yes, we can. So far fewer people are using bottled water. 3. Over the past decade, students studying abroad has increased significantly. Can we count students? Yes, we can. So the number of students studying abroad. 4. There is educational content on YouTube. Is content something we usually count and make plural? No. So there is a great deal of educational content. The next couple of mistakes aren't always considered mistakes. It depends on the context, formal or informal. You have to understand that more formal English requires standard grammar. A professional or academic audience expects us to follow the norm because it's clear and appropriate. Think of how you dress. You wear business attire to a job interview. You put on nice clothes to go to a wedding, right? Well, in more formal English, you have to dress up your language. Put on your best. Let's talk about pronouns. Remember to be polite and put yourself second after another person. Rather than me and my friend, it's more standard to say my friend and me. But please also remember the difference between me and I. Me is an object pronoun. I is a subject pronoun. Compare. My friend and I saw a movie last night. Who? My friend and I. That's the subject. The movie theater gave my friend and me free popcorn. Who did they give it to? To us. To my friend and me. That's an object. Me is needed whether it's an object of a verb or a preposition. Similarly, please remember that myself is a reflexive pronoun. Some people think that myself is a more polite form of me or I, but it isn't. You can see yourself in the mirror. You can treat yourself to an ice cream cone. Reflexive pronouns mean that the subject is doing an action to or for themselves. It's not standard to say. My colleagues and myself will keep you informed at all times. Say my colleagues and I. It's not standard to say. Please reach out to my colleagues or myself should you have any questions. Say my colleagues or me. Take this short quiz. Correct the errors to reflect standard grammar. Take a look at number one. What should we say if we want to use standard grammar? My brother and I are thinking about taking a road trip this summer. Look at number two. What would be more standard? The manager asked my two co-workers and me to stay after the meeting. And number three. It would be more standard to say the invitation was addressed to her and me, so we both felt included. I might prefer to say the invitation was addressed to the two of us, so we both felt included. The final common mistake is acceptable in everyday spoken English. Many Americans don't consider it a mistake. Do you remember the patterns for unreal conditionals with if? What happens to the verb be? Should I say, if I was you? Or, if I were you? You'll hear both, but standard grammar calls for were. If I were you. This form is called the subjunctive. We need to shift from the present to the past for unreal hypothetical situations. For the verb be, we use were for all subjects. The subjunctive is also used when expressing wishes. I wish you were here. This means you aren't here, so I'm sad. I wish he were here. Which means he isn't here. I wish it weren't so. This expression means I want to change the present situation, but I can't. I wish it weren't so. I wish I had more time. Means I don't have more time. I want it, but I don't have it. Take this short quiz. Choose the sentence that uses standard English grammar. 1. If I were her, I'd apply for the promotion. 2. He talks as if he were the manager of the company. 3. I wish my commute were shorter. Again, in everyday English, a lot of Americans would choose was in this kind of sentence. 4. It's high time we were more careful with our personal data online. The expression, it's high time, requires the subjunctive. We'll end here. There are more common mistakes I can share with you, so if you'd like another lesson on these topics, let me know. Like the video and post a comment. And let me know if the topics we've studied so far still confuse you. That's all for now. If you'd like more interaction and feedback, then please join the English with Jennifer community on Patreon, where we study all skills for confident, effective communication. The link is in the video description. Thanks for watching and happy studies!