Grammar

During our conversation on Skype, a friend from Nevada interrupted me when I said, “They’ll conduct a second round of telephonic interview.”

He then apologized to me, saying, here in North America, we don’t say “telephonic interview”; “telephone interview” is more common here.

That made me super curious about the phrase and I started Googling just to see how people around the world (esp non-native English speakers) would use words in situations like this.

In fact, that’s the motivation behind this guide.

Grammar Mistakes or Grammatical Mistakes?

This is one of the many queries non-native English speakers are curious about.

Maybe they have been in a similar situation? Who knows!

When you turn to Chat GPT for answers, it says both “grammar mistakes” and “grammatical mistakes” are grammatically correct, but they are used in slightly different contexts.

So, what are the contexts?

Everyday Language vs. Formal Writing

“Grammar mistakes” refers to errors or inaccuracies in the use of grammar in written or spoken language. For example, using incorrect verb tense, subject-verb agreement, or punctuation.

“Grammatical mistakes” is a more formal term for the same concept. It also refers to errors in grammar usage but is often used in more technical or academic contexts.

In everyday language, “grammar mistakes” is more commonly used, while “grammatical mistakes” is frequently seen in formal writing or discussions about language and linguistics. Both phrases are correct, and the choice between them depends on the context and style of writing.

So, according to the Chat GPT explanation, it’s essentially a matter of specific use cases and scenarios. That makes perfect sense.

However, there’s another convention attached to this distinction.

Attributive Noun vs. Adjective

In the phrase “telephone interview”, both telephone and interview are nouns, but telephone performs the action of an adjective by attributing a nature to the interview.

In other words, it defines how the interview is conducted, ie. over the telephone.
When we say, “telephonic interview”, we essentially use the adjective instead of the attributive noun. So, it’s just an alternative to “telephone interview”.

In many countries such as India, however, the use of “telephonic interview” is very common among speakers (even in corporate offices).

Why is that? You may wonder!

Let’s just say Indian English is more formal or is it one of those common English mistakes Indians make?

Similar Guide: 6 Common English Vocabulary Errors and How to Avoid Them

This brings me to the next question – how do I use an attributive noun correctly?

How to Use Attributive Nouns Correctly

Attributive nouns are very common in everyday speech. Some examples are:

Music Class, Sea Food, Night Sky, Car Park, Country Road, Flight Tickets, Math Teacher.

While attributive nouns are a great and easy alternative to their adjective forms, they must be used judiciously.

In one of his blog posts, Ben Mudrak, an AJE author, cautions users to tread carefully in order to avoid causing confusion among readers.

Brevity is often paired with ambiguity, he quips.

For example, when you say, “voter awareness”, it could mean both of the following:

Awareness that voters are present
Awareness of a particular topic among voters

Likewise, when you add an adjective to an attributive noun, it could add to the confusion.

For example, a “small truck driver” could both mean a diminutive driver of a normal truck and a driver of a small truck)

Indeed, a good grasp of attributive nouns can help ward off such potential mistakes.

I hope this guide is useful to you.

Even as the English language is evolving and modern usages are making their way to universal acceptance, there are many usages that are still not correct by conventional rules.

In this guide, let’s take a look at the common English errors found mostly in the United Kingdom. There are many grammar mistakes and phrases that drive British people crazy. Well, not literally.

Let’s take a look:

“Of” instead of “Have”

Many people are in the habit of saying “of” after should/could incorrectly. It’s mostly true for people who have developed a habit of speaking by listening to others.

For example:
I would have told you about it. (Right)
I would of told you about it. (Wrong)

He should have tried harder. (Right)
He should of tried harder. (Wrong)

Can I get instead of Please, may/can I have

It’s interesting how phrases can have a varying degree of politeness in speech. While British people tend to use “Please” more often than not, North Americans are often more direct.

For example:
Please, may I get / can I get a coffee! (British)
Can I have / Can I grab a coffee! (American)

If you want to sound polite while asking for permission, you might want to use words such as “Please”, “May” or “Have”.

Mispronounce Letter H as Heytch

As an Indian, I have seen many people (especially IT professionals) mispronouncing the letter “H” as “Heytch”. As a result, they would pronounce words like “HD” as “Heytch Dee”, “HR” as “Heytch Aar”.

If you’re wondering where they picked it up, it’s probably their workplace where they worked with some British coworkers.

In the United Kingdom, many speakers tend to mispronounce the letter “H” (eytch) as “Heytch” which often gives their Indian friends the impression that it’s the right pronunciation.

Overuse of ‘Like’

Using “Like” as an emphasis is a common scenario among the British people, especially in everyday speech.

For example:
It’s like so annoying! (Wrong)
It’s so annoying! (Right)

Not only the British, but many Indians also tend to commit this error while speaking.

Was Sitting down / Sat down

It’s also common for many British people to say “I was sat down” when all they mean is “I was sitting down”.

For example:
I was sitting down / I was sitting on a bench. (Right)
I was sat down. / I was sat down on a bench. (Wrong)

Misuse of Reflexive Pronoun

Reflexive pronouns are some of the most misunderstood rules in English. Like many people around the world, British people also tend to make mistakes. Among all reflexing pronouns, “Myself” is the most commonly misused.

For example:
Myself and Tom will help you. (Wrong)
Tom and I will help you. (Right)

Yes, that’s myself. (Wrong)
Yes, that’s me (Right)

Using adjectives instead of adverbs

There’s a good deal of confusion when it comes to the difference between good and well. Good is an adjective while Well is an adverb. However, quite a few people (including British) tend to interchange them, especially in their everyday conversation.

For example:
He did good. (He did something positive)
He did well. (He did it nicely)

Note: When you say, “He did good”, you actually mean he did some good deed. On the contrary, “He did well” means he did something well, meaning his performance in something.

Question:
How are you doing today?

Answer:
I’m doing good. (Wrong)
I’m doing well. (Right)

Note: When you say, “I’m doing good”, it actually means you’re doing some good deed, e.g. giving loads to charity, your lunch to a homeless person.

Credit: English with Lucy (YouTube)

Nearly all of us make some of these embarrassing grammar mistakes without even realizing it. Check out the list to see if you’re aware of these flubs.

Even the most image-conscious people commit grammar blunders in their day-to-day life. With incorrect words, spelling, and punctuation, many people leave a wrong impression on others. Make no mistakes — people often make assumptions about your education and intelligence based on your grammar and vocabulary. Here’s a list of the most common grammar mistakes nearly all of us make without being aware of them.

First-come, First-serve

The idiom “First come, first served” essentially means a group of people or things will be dealt with or given something in the order in which they arrive.

By leaving the “d”, it suggests the person who arrives first will be the one who serves everyone. That’s funny!

I Could Care Less

When you say you “could care less”, you essentially mean you still have “some care” to be allocated to something. However, that’s not what you really want to say when you want to say you’re not bothered about something at all. Therefore, the right idiom is “I couldn’t care less”, which means you care about something the least.

Irregardless

Regardless means without regard. For example, Sam will eat chocolate regardless of the consequences.

There are no such words as “Irregardless”. Avoid it or look silly!

“I” as the last word in a sentence

Many people tend to end their sentences with “I” when it should be “me”.

For example,

Whenever in doubt (I vs Me), the trick is to take the first person’s name out of the sentence and see how the sentence sounds with the personal pronoun left. In the above sentence, “He spoke to I” would sound odd.

Likewise, it’s incorrect to use “Me” in the beginning.

For example,

Emigrated to

Speaking of immigration, there are two words that often confuse users — emigrate and immigrate.

Emigrate is always followed by “from” while immigrate always go with “to”.

For example,

In short, “to emigrate” is coming from somewhere while “to immigrate” is going somewhere.

Overuse of apostrophes

Unless you’re using texting or tweeting, it’s always important to use apostrophes in the correct way.

Broadly speaking, apostrophes play two vital roles in grammar: to indicate possession or shorted form.

For example,

However, apostrophes are often overused.

For example,

The first-year anniversary

The word year is redundant here — the “first anniversary” should suffice.

Subject and pronoun disagreement

The subject-pronoun agreement is one of the tricky affairs. The thumb rule says the pronoun should agree with the corresponding subject. However, many people tend to overlook this critical aspect.

Take a look at the following examples:

In the first sentence, the subject (a person) is one person while the corresponding pronoun (their) represents a collective noun. Therefore, they don’t agree with each other. While the second sentence is correct, it’s not often the best way to say it. Therefore, the third sentence is more correct.

Overuse of “literally”

Literally means actually. You shouldn’t use it unless something actually happened. Many people, however, tend to exaggerate their expressions by overusing “literally”.

For example,

Do you know any other bloopers worth adding to this list? Please, let me know in the comments below!

Recently, I came across the following tweet.

Women- "We are not safe in Delhi."

Delhi police- "We too."

— PuNsTeR™ (@Pun_Starr) November 5, 2019

Even as the tweet was retweeted over a thousand times, I was surprised to find nobody pointed out the glaring mistake.

Can you see the error in the above tweet?

That’s right — “We Too”.

In English communication, there is a convention to follow when you express your agreement/disagreement with someone.

For example:

I love ice-cream — So do I.
I am quite honest — So am I.
I have seen that movie — So have I.
I must leave now — So must I.
I would be surprised — So would I.

In all of the above examples, the speaker is talking about themselves. What if they were talking about someone else?

For example:

She’s always late — So is he.
He has many friends — So does she.

In the above examples, your response is about someone else. It’s important to note the agreement between “subject” and “verb” as well.

Agreeing with Negative Speeches

If the speaker is using negative speeches, your agreement should be negative too.

For example:

I don’t like politics — Neither Do I (Nor Do I in the UK)
I didn’t make it — Neither Did I (Nor Did I in the UK)
I’m not fond of Jazz — Neither Am I (Nor Am I in the UK)

Therefore, it’s wrong to say “Me Too” in response to the above examples.

Keeping the convention in mind, the tweet should have been as follows: