6 Common Mistakes in English
- Kamaludin Iryanto
- Mar 18, 2017
- 2 min read
by : Iryanto Yauw
1 I or Me after a preposition and another person.
The rule: Use “Me.”
Incorrect version: “She went to the store with Sally and I.” Correct version: “She went to the store with Sally and me.”
Imagine the sentence with only one person because that usually makes the pronoun choice clear. So think of it this way: You wouldn’t say, “She went to the store with I,” right? “Adding Sally doesn’t change anything.”
2 Effect versus Affect.
The rule: Effect is usually a noun, while affect is typically a verb.
Incorrect version: “The book really effected me.” Correct version: “The book really affected me.”
Incorrect version: “The book had an affect on me.” Correct version: “The book had an effect on me.”
“Mixing up ‘affect’ and ‘effect’ is one of the most common errors because not only do they sound alike, but they also have similar meanings.”There are exceptions (such as “to effect change” or “a baffled affect”), but most of the time affect is a verb and effect is a noun.
3 Further versus Farther.
The rule: Farther refers to an actual distance, while further should be used for a figurative distance.
Incorrect version: “Macy’s is further away than Nordstrom.” Correct version: “Macy’s is farther away than Nordstrom.”
“The traditional American thinking is that ‘farther’ is for physical distance (e.g., ‘Macy’s is farther than Nordstrom’) and ‘further" is for figurative distance (e.g., ‘Don’t bother me about this further’).”
4 Lie versus Lay.
The rule: People lie, things lay.
Incorrect version: “I’m going to lay down for a few minutes.” Correct version: “I’m going to lie down for a few minutes.”
You lay an object somewhere, and you lie if you’re taking action on your own.People get confused because of the children’s prayer Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep.
5 Impact as a verb.
The rule: Impact is a noun, not a verb.
Incorrect version: “The story really impacted me.” Correct version: “The story really influenced me.”
Impact should stay a noun unless you are talking about having an impacted wisdom tooth.
6 Fewer versus Less Than.
The rule: Use fewer for countable items (with some exceptions).
Incorrect version: “There are less than three pieces of pizza left.” Correct version: “There are fewer than three pieces of pizza left.”
Typically, ‘fewer’ is for things you can count, and ‘less’ is for things you can’t count.
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