Welcome to the world of English, and join me in eradicating the top 5 mistakes you make while speaking this wonderful language. English is a funny language. You would remember Mr. Amitabh Bachchan used this line in one of his movies. Believe me, it is funny. The more you know it, the more you want to study it. The more you study it, the more you use it. The more you use it, the more you know it. Welcome to the top 5 mistakes made while speaking English.

Let us start then.

Read the sentences.

• Hey, I need some piece of mind.
• The list of books are with me.
• I accidentally ran to my uncle while I was on a date with my girlfriend.
• My aunt has three daughters-in-laws.
• He has taken to his father.

Wait a minute. Am I right, or am I making an error in the above sentences?

Have you ever been in a situation where your Grammar skills just abandoned you and left you high and dry? It happens many times. One day, I heard someone saying, and I quote, " Where discipline is concerned, I put my foot down". I was confused. The foot is already down as he is standing. So what is the person trying to say? Later, I realized that putting your foot down is an idiom!

Now, imagine this. You are presenting a critical topic in front of the board of directors of your company, and you get confused between 'advise' and 'advice'. I would start sweating. Won't you? Don't sweat. Let us see the Top 5 Grammar mistakes made while speaking or writing English. To simplify, let us consider the above five sentences and study the errors and their correction.

1) The Homophones

Similar-sounding words: Let us take my first example.

• Incorrect: I need some piece of mind 
• Correct: I need some peace of mind

Piece indicates a slice or a segment. Peace is a state like quiet or calm. Words that sound similar but have different meanings are called 'Homophones'. Let us see a few more examples.

Hear/Here, Made/Maid, Cell/Sell, Hair/Hare. Let's use them in a sentence

• Hair: She has very soft hair.
• Hare: The hare ran away before they caught it.

Improvement Tip: Make a list of at least ten homophones, use them in sentences and get some peace of mind. 

2) Subject Verb Agreement

Let us consider the second sentence in the above examples. 

• Incorrect: The list of books are with me.
• Correct: The list of books is with me. 

Why? You would ask. Let me explain. The verb should always be in agreement with the subject. We all know that, but due to the 'error of proximity', we often use verbs as per the nearest subject instead of its proper subject. It is known popularly as the Subject Verb Agreement.

Let us see one more example:

The quality of fruits is not good this year.

Ask a simple question. What am I speaking about? The fruits or the quality. The quality. Hence singular verb.

The new books are all full of quality information.

What am I speaking about here? The books, so it will take a plural verb as books is a plural Noun.

• Improvement Tip: Consciously pay attention to the subject in your sentence when you speak or write, and use verbs accordingly.

3) Prepositions

The third mistake in the top 5 mistakes made while speaking English is the incorrect use of Prepositions We all know Prepositions show the relation between two words. Let us see my third sentence.

• Incorrect: I accidentally ran to my uncle when I was on a date with my girlfriend 
• Correct: I ran into my uncle when I was on a date with my girlfriend. 

So why is my first sentence wrong? I meant to say that I accidentally met my uncle when I was with my girlfriend. Hence correct usage would be ran into and not ran to. There are Nouns, Verbs, and Adjectives that have to be used with proper Prepositions to bring out the correct meaning.

Let us see some more similar words.

• Access to: We do not have access to those papers.
• Craving for: I suddenly had a craving for an ice cream.
• Proof of: The king ordered to give a proof of his existence.
• Escape from: Try to escape from the clutches of depression

Improvement Tip: Use such words in sentences with proper prepositions and see how you get the exact meaning.

4) Noun (Number) 

We all know there are two numbers in English. Singular and Plural. Some Nouns are tricky when it comes to their Plural form.

• Incorrect: My aunt has three daughter-in-laws.
• Correct: My aunt has three daughters-in-law.

Let us see these tricky plural forms

• Man: Men
• Child: Children
• Foot: Feet
• Son-in-law: Sons-in-law

Answer this puzzle. What is the plural form of News? There are some words that do not change at all.

• Deer - Deer
• News - News
• Police - Police
• Scissors - Scissors

Improvement Tip: Try to list down words which you think are difficult for you and find their plural forms.

5) Idioms

As we come to the end of the top 5 mistakes made while speaking English, let us explore a unique mistake we all make. My fifth sentence is a perfect example of the incorrect use of idioms.

• Incorrect: He has taken to his father
• Correct: He has taken after his father

Taken to means being addicted to, and taken after means to resemble. Idioms, proverbs, and expressions are a key part of everyday English. Idioms don't always make sense literally, so we need to know their meaning and usage.

Here are some examples:

• Cut down: to reduce
• Call it a day: Stop the work
• Don't get confused. Get your idioms right

Improvement Tip: Use of idioms can show your confidence and comfort in using the language. Make a list of common idioms, and use them when speaking and writing English. Watch a lot of English serials, movies, and documentaries and read books to master those idioms.

Great isn't it? So let's call it a day. 

Conclusion

English may seem a very tricky language to use. To conclude, remember these points, and you will never fail.

• Pay attention to Nouns, Verbs, and Prepositions
• Be confident while speaking
• Listen actively
• Read a lot
• Speak

I hope this contribution helps you all. Keep writing, keep speaking, and keep exploring. Remember, English is a very funny language!

.    .    .