Me English Bad: The 20 Most Common Errors Writers Make (The Brief Basics Version)

For you, the consumer, I will cut back on the work you will have to do in order to write well. I will combine some of the 20 Most Common Errors and eliminate others that don't create the greatest number of errors. Why? Because often those college instructors and their text books make it too difficult to understand with their hazy, complicated, detailed methods and rules. But not only will I make it easier to understand by putting it all in laymen's terms, I will combine where combining cuts back on unnecessary detail. But there's another reason to not go into all this "detail." Read on for the answer.

Many if not most Americans lack a basic understanding of what it takes to write and write effectively. Effectively here means that your writing is 90% error free. We are not looking for perfection, but we are getting rid of a majority of errors so that what you want to say is clear and coherent or that the errors don't distract the reader from getting the main point.

Yes, writing rules have nothing to do with the writer and everything to do with the reader.

And yes, if you are writing for yourself, so be it, but the majority of writing does and should focus on the reader. You may know what you are saying, but if you can't get it down your arm and into your pen, pencil, or keyboard so that the reader understands, then you are not doing your job.

Now for the good news.

Contrary to popular misconception, you don't have to know a lot of grammar (YUCK!) to know how to write well-clear, coherent, emphatic prose. Just the basics will do: subject, verb, adjective, adverb, pronoun. There are also a few terms and rules you'll need to know, but it is not a daunting task to know enough to be able to write well.

Trust me. I know you're busy and not an English major or grammar scholar sitting in an ivory tower composing 100 page treaties  on the demonstrative pronoun "that." (Yes, sadly, this is how some have actually chosen to spend their lives. Really!)

Sentence: subject, verb, object (or subject, verb, complete thought)

Clause: subject and verb

Phrase: Just a subject or Just a verb or neither

Once you know these, you are ready to properly place your commas.

Regarding comma placement, generally, you are setting off words, phrases, and clauses from the sentence. The sentence (main clause or independent clause) has the main idea and can stand alone.

                I am late for the store.

That's a sentence: subject, verb, object (complete idea)

Now let's throw in some commas.

Although he was often late, he arrived on time and in good health, for the most part.

The main idea, meaning, the main point or most important information given, resides in the sentence: "He arrived on time and in good condition." The point expressed in the dependent clause (it depends on the main clause of sentence to make sense), "Although he was often late," is secondary or an aside. Just like the phrase, "for the most part," expresses a secondary or less important idea.

Four Comma Rules: The Basics

General Comma Rule #1: Commas within sentences are used to set off secondary information expressed in words, phrases, and clauses.

General Comma Rule #2: Commas are used to separate 3 or more items in a list: words, phrases, clauses.

                She wore a red hat, pink sweater, and blue pants.

Helpful hint: To determine whether you have a phrase or a clause, generally, if you remove the first word to reveal a sentence, it is a clause; otherwise, it is a phrse

Just remove the first word from each of the following clauses to find the sentence:

Since she was a small girl

When I am late for the bus

Because you are a man

General Comma Rule #3:  Place a comma between two sentences (compound sentence) along with a coordinating conjunction (and, or, nor, for, so, but, yet).

                She was a bright girl, so she often got at the top of her class.

General Comma Rule #4: Use a comma to set off coordinated adjectives.

Helpful hint: coordinate adjectives are those that can be placed in any order. I can say "big, tall, handsome man," "tall, big, handsome man," "handsome, big, tall man," and so on. However, if the adjectives are non-coordinate or restrictive then they need to be in a certain order and no commas are required.

                The bright red fire engine flew down the road.

Because "bright" modifies "red" and "bright red" modifies "fire engine," they are restricted to this order and are not interchangeable. Do you hear people say "red bright fire engine"? or "calico pink sweater"?

As I said, there are other rules, but these are the rules that are important because the breaking of these rules cause the greatest number of offenses. Also, I've combined rules where there is overlapping, so it comes down to the big four you see above. As a college / university instructor with over seven years experience, having looked at over 100,000 pages worth of writing, I can guarantee that these four rules will cover the greatest number of offenses.

What's a Pronoun and What's So Vague About It?

Pronouns are nouns that replace proper nouns: Bob took his bike to the repair shop. We refer to "Bob" by using "his" which creates greater variety and less monotony. He's an example of a student's paper that uses too few pronouns, along with a lack of variety in referring to the subject.

Richard Nixon was the main culprit in the Watergate Scandal. Richard ordered his men to break in and steal Democrat secrets. Richard was impeached, but left office before anything could happen. Richard is now dead.

Yes, this is actually a student's paper. And I was impressed that he was a personal friend of Nixon's, for he referred to the former president by first name throughout the paper. The student should have used greater variety in referring to the subject: Nixon, President Nixon, the former president, him, he, or even Tricky Dick. You get the picture.

But Vague Pronoun references are a problem. For instance, if you write "The radio executives played the disc jockeys in a softball game and they won." Who won? There is no rule that says the pronoun has to refer to the first subject mentioned. For some reason, the inexperienced writer thinks this is a rule, but it is not.

Also, don't write this sentence, unless you have defined who "they" are: "They make sure that you are going to pay high taxes." Unless you've explained who "they" are in a previous sentence-hopefully a sentence or two previous-it's too much of a guess for the reader to figure out who "they" are.

The Girls is Going to Be at the Game

Subject / Verb Agreement is important but not an error that comes up frequently. Most writers, even of the beginning or inexperienced variety, don't make this error often. The big problem comes in when there is something that causes you to believe the subject is plural but it's singular and vice versa:

                The group of students is going on a field trip.

Even though you've got "students" there, something that appears plural, it is actually a "group" that is treated as singular. You wouldn't say "The group of students are going on a field trip," but you would say "The students are going on a field trip," for now they are treated as individuals. Just like when you refer to the government it is not a "they" but an "it."

                The government has made up its mind and will change the law accordingly.

Which "Someone" Are Your Referring To?

OK, back to the pronoun. Another issue comes in dealing with Indefinite Pronouns or pronouns that don't refer to a known person. The most problematic are those that appear to be plural but are singular in nature: anyone, each, anybody, nobody.

                If anybody is going to the game, she or he needs to bring his or her coat.

But there's another problem. Now that you've used the indefinite pronoun, you have to keep using the singular "she / he" or "his / her" combination. To avoid this situation, just replace the pronoun with the plural "people" or second person "you."

                If you are going to the game, bring your coat.

                People going to the game need to bring their coat.

Helpful hint: If it seems awkward or wordy, look for the alternative fix.

Their, There, They're; Affect, Effect; To, Too, Two

Yes, homonyms, or words that sound alike are a major pain. Here's a list that will help you feel that pain.

You get the point. There are literally hundreds of these problematic homonyms. Should you memorize them all? Heavens no! But if you are not sure, you need to look them up. Sorry, the majority of good writing comes simply from work and effort. No shortcuts here.

Sentence Sense: Fragment, Comma Splice, and Fused

Fragments are missing a subject or verb: "Is on his way" (subject is missing or the who? or what? of the sentence) or "Billy to the school" (what's Billy doing? running? walking? driving?)

Fused or Run On sentences are two sentences side by side without proper punctuation.

                Billy is on his way to school Cindy will meet him there.

 Here you can use one of three forms of punctuation between two sentences: a comma and a coordinating conjunction (and, or, nor, so, but, yet), a semi colon, or a period. Most likely, here you will use a comma along with an "and." You could also use a semi colon ( ; ) because the two sentences are close in meaning or highly related one to the other. But keep in mind that they should be used sparingly and for variety. Don't go semi colon crazy. Also, don't confuse it with the colon ( : ) or that which is used to emphasize or specify what you are talking about.

                I love my country: America              

                My garden is full of vegetables: corn, peas, radishes, tomatoes.

The most common sentence error found among beginning writers is the Comma Splice. 

                She is always finding excuses, I wish she would grow up. 

It probably occurs most frequently because it doesn't look that bad. And, in actuality, established writers do use it. But they only do so when there are two simple sentences without any other punctuation. Don't use it when you've got two sentences like the following. 

                Although he is not smart, I knew he would do well on the test, and he did, for the most part. 

Too many commas within the two sentences create the confusion. But you should avoid comma splices all together, unless you are established and people know you know what you are doing. Even then, they might not accept the comma splice, like the director of the university writing center I did some work for. I intentionally used a comma splice, but since I was a new instructor, he didn't know me well enough to trust my choice of punctuation. So be prudent in your use of intentional comma splices or any bending or breaking of the writing laws, for that matter.

There are other errors, of course. But these are the biggies, and I've even combined some of the errors, so I've taken care of most of them-say 14 of the 20. So that 70% should get you the 90% you're looking for.

Good luck and good writing.