1. PES/ENG/XI/121
• Master version of file.
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A PUNJAB EDUSAT SOCIETY PRODUCTION
Subject - English
Class - XI
Module - Common Errors
ANCHOR 1
Good morning students.
Today we are going to talk about some COMMON ERRORS made in English grammar by most
of us.
Students you will notice these errors are very common and small but very often made by most of
us.
But why, when and where do we make such errors?
Students, English is a borrowed language in our country, but it is widely used. While talking in
English, there is no one around us to rectify our mistake. So we keep on repeating them.
Everyone makes an occasional spelling or grammatical mistake. But if you make them frequently
enough in your writing, or even if you just make one or two obvious ones, your credibility goes
way down.
fbZyD ftZu bZrGZr ;ZG e'b'I ed/ Bk ed/ rbZsh j' jh iKdh j?. go i/ eo n;hI ne;o rbZsh eod/ jK sK fJ;
dk ;kjwD/ tkb/ s/ p{ok gOGkt g?Idk j?.
Why do we make such errors? What is the reason behind this?
These days, we tend to communicate via the keyboard as much as we do verbally. Often, we're
in a hurry, quickly dashing off e-mails with typos and grammatical shortcuts. But we should take
care to avoid mistakes in our professional and academic writing.
Electronic :[r ftZu fit/ spoken words dh EK s/ written words Bkb communication f}nkdk j[zdk j?,
n;hI ;ko/ time save eoB bJh short cuts dh tos'I eod/ jK. fit/I you dh EK s/ u, with dh EK s/ vd nkfd.
nfij/ shortcut use eodhnK, fJ; rZb dk yk; fXnkB oZyDk g?Idk j? fe d'B'I parties ftZu shortcut dh
understanding same j'Dh ukjhdh j?. go professional letters ftZu fJ; soQK d/ shortcut ~ avoid
eoBk ukjhdk j?.
What are the areas where these errors are made?
Ok before we go further, let us go through our learning objectives.
VO for LOs
Learning Objectives
Upon completion of the modules, you will be able to:
• Indicate the common errors.
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• Locate the key areas where these errors are made commonly.
• Identify the mistakes.
• Acquire and learn those steps which will help you in identifying areas of mistakes.
• State various examples citing areas of common mistakes.
ANCHOR 2
Well students, before we begin our grammar lesson for the day, take a moment to peruse this
list of types of writing that loses demand accuracy in writing. Reader may lose interest and
accountability if he or she finds errors in them.
( Show the images one by one in quick flick!!!!)
Newspapers → Textbooks → Magazines → Business proposals → Emails → Novels →
Television ads → Instruction manuals → Letters of acceptance → Catalogues →
Dictionaries → Pill bottles → Book jackets → Posters → Cheques → Clothing tags →
Envelope labels → Nutrition Facts → Closed captioning → CD cases → Press releases →
Amazon reader reviews → Blogs → Classifieds → Maps → Calendars → Recipes →
Campaign ads → Captions → Memos → Shampoo bottles
Students, as we have read that these common errors are generally made in grammar portions
so let us go through some basic grammar definitions.
Since these are common grammar errors so let us go through parts of speech first.
VO 1 WITH TEXT ON SCREEN (Show one at a time. And for all the examples given, let
each example be shown in images with particular label)
1. Noun:
A person, place, thing, or idea. Examples: lady, beach, pen, ugliness
2. Adjective:
A word that describes a noun. Examples: blue, hot, smelly, beautiful
3. Verb:
A word that describes an action or a state of being. Examples: jumping, stinking,
cooking, crying.
4. Adverb:
A word that describes a verb or adjective. Examples: run slowly, too fast, eat now, very
nice
5. Pronoun: (Create two boys, show only one for ‘he’, let it point its finger to the other boy for
‘him’, show both of them for ‘they’ and show ref. books for ‘it’)
A word that stands in for a noun. Examples: he, it, him, they
6. Possessive Pronoun: (Create two boys and two girls standing by the table. Put some apples
on the table. Let one boy pick up an apple and passing on to one girl for ‘hers’ Let there be a
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3. PES/ENG/XI/121
bubbles ‘This is hers”. Let him pick another and eat for ‘mine’ let there be bubble ‘This is mine’.
Let him give another apple to the other boy for ‘yours” in a bubble ‘This is yours’. Let there be
seen some apples left on the table, another bubbles with image of three four people for
‘THEIRS’ with a bubble ‘These are theirs”)
A pronoun that indicates possession. Examples: hers, mine, yours, theirs
7. Preposition:
A word that begins a descriptive phrase. Examples: to, of, for, as, over
8. Conjunction:
Conjunction refers to A joining word. There are only 7 and can be remembered with the
acronym FANBOYS: for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so, besides.
ANCHOR 3
Let us read this anecdote.
(The given paragraph has many errors, it has to be shown on the board first and later highlighting every
errors, it has to be corrected upon)
Who's Counting?
Napoleon was involved to conversation with a colonel of a Hungarian Battalion who has
been taken prisoner in Italy. The colonel mentioned he had fought in the army of Maria
Theresa. "You must had a few years under your belt!" exclaimed Napoleon. "I'm sure I’ve
lived sixty or seventy years," replied the colonel. You mean to say," Napoleon continued,
"you have not kept track of the years you have lived?"
The colonel promptly replied, "Sir, I alway count my money, my shirts, and my horses -
but as for my years, I knew nobody who wants to steal them, and I shall surely never
loose them."
Well student, since you have read this anecdote, was there anything unusual about it? Could
you see something?
Ok let us read this anecdote again and pay attention to words in italics which are made bold for
you.
Napoleon was involved in conversation with a colonel of a Hungarian battalion who had
been taken prisoner in Italy. The colonel mentioned he had fought in the army of Maria
Theresa. "You must have a few years under your belt!" exclaimed Napoleon. "I'm sure I’ve
lived sixty or seventy years," replied the colonel. “You mean to say," Napoleon
continued, "you have not kept track of the years you have lived?"
The colonel promptly replied, "Sir, I always count my money, my shirts, and my horses -
but as for my years, I know nobody who wants to steal them, and I shall surely never lose
them."
Students, can you see those simple mistakes which have been rectified. In the first line to has
been replaced with in and has have been replaced with had. In the third line had has been
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replaced with have. While in the sixth line, s has been added to the word alway, knew has been
replaced with know and spelling of lose has been corrected as l-o-s-e-.
Yes, these are the common errors which are made frequently by most of us but go unattended.
Well students, let us now pay attention to some IMPORTANT GRAMMAR PORTIONS where
we tend to go wrong in using them.
Anchor 4
Lets start our topic with Homonyms
Homonyms are words that sound alike but are spelled differently. This is by no means a
complete list, but these are some of the most commonly misused homonyms. Homonyms Uj
words j[zd/ jB i' ;[BD ftZu fJZe' fijh j[zd/ jB, go spelling ftZu different j[zd/ jB. fit/I write ns/ right,
sun ns/ son. fJjBK d/ e[ZM j'o example fJMI jB-
• To/too/two:
To Too  Two
I went to the school. It is too hot here. I want two bottles of pickle,
not three
I am going to teach you I want to go, too! One and one make two
about grammar.
• There/their/they're:
There: A direction. Their: A plural possessive They're: A contraction of the
pronoun. words "They are."
For example: For example: For example:
I put the box over there. Where did the children put They're getting away!
their toys?
Their minds are elsewhere.
There is a cat in the house.
• Who's / whose:
Who's: A contraction of the Whose: Possessive
words "Who is" pronoun.
For example: For example:
Who's responsible for this? Whose dog is this?
I gave it to the man who's in We will punish the person
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charge whose fault it is.
• write/rite/right:
Write: A verb. Rite: A noun meaning a Right: Three meanings ↓
tradition or ritual. First
Adjective meaning
"correct." For example:He
has the right answer.
For example: For example: Second
Write down your number. Growing a beard is a rite of Adjective, the direction For
passage. example
You should turn right at that
sign.
There is a cat in the house. Their minds are elsewhere. Third
Noun that refers to
something you are owed.
For example
Now that he is eighteen, he
has the right to vote.
• Accept/except:
Accept: Verb meaning to Except: Two uses –
agree to take something. First
Preposition meaning
excluding.
For example
I took everything except the
kitchen sink.
For example Second
I accept your apology. I will Conjunction also meaning
not accept late papers. "excluding."
For example
I would have taken the sink,
except it was too heavy.
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Anchor 5
Well these are some of the homonyms which are mistakenly used.
Let us now learn about Punctuation.
I was going to create a capsule on punctuation. I quickly realized, however, that punctuation
rules would make up an entire hub in and of itself. Perhaps this will be coming soon.
I will name one error, however, that I see many people making. It is the run-on sentence caused
by a comma error.
Example: I saw this Hub Page, I looked at it to fix my grammar.
Do you see the problem? A comma is simply not a strong enough piece of punctuation to be
placed in this spot.
Ways to fix:
• Since both sides of the sentence are complete thoughts, you could just put them
into two sentences:
I saw this Hub Page. I looked at it to fix my grammar.
 By Using a conjunction:
I saw this Hub Page, so I looked at it to fix my grammar.
or I saw this Hub Page, and I looked at it to fix my grammar.
 You could use the semicolon.
I saw this Hub Page; I looked at it to fix my grammar.
Anchor 6
STUDENTS, these are simple and small things which means a lot in this language as wrong
use can completely change the meaning of the sentence only.
wsbp rbZs use Bkb noE fpbe[b jh pdb iKdk j?.
Now we will discuss about Plurals versus Possessive
There are rules for making something plural. There are rules for using to make a word
possessive. LEARN THEM NOW!
Plural: When there is more than one of something. Add -s or -es, no apostrophe.
For Example:
 These televisions cost a lot of money.
 The numerous errors on your papers indicate a lack of revisions.
Possessive: when you indicate that something belongs to something else. Add (’s )for
singular nouns, and just add an apostrophe for plural nouns.
• The man's tie is crooked.
• My sisters' dogs are ugly.
• My dress's zipper caught on the fabric. (Some people prefer to just add a single
apostrophe to singular nouns that end in -s. Dress' is also acceptable.)
Well this tells you how plurals are used.
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See this
I have two sisters - in - laws.
I have two sisters - in- law
Now which is correct?
Yes the second one because the relation is not plural but the person of that relation can be
plural or not.
Anchor 7
Now next is Agreement
Grammatically speaking, agreement is when the identity of the noun (singular/plural,
male/female) matches the identity of another part of the sentence. In English, there are a
few types of agreement to watch out for:
Noun/Pronoun: Plural vs. singular is the most common error, especially in cases when
talking about a person whom you don't know the gender.
(Personally, I find the politically correct gender neutrality quite annoying. I would just say, "The
child was walking his dog.”Child is singular, and their is plural. fJ; example ftZu child singular
j? ns/ their plural.
(While showing both the error and correct sentences highlight the correction)
Incorrect: "The child was walking their dog."
Correct: "The child was walking his or her dog.
Incorrect: - Everyone wanted their share.
Correct: Everyone wanted his share.
(Everyone is singular)
Incorrect: One of those boys lost their bicycle
Correct: One of those boys lost his bicycle
(One is singular and there is plural so incorrect).
Noun/Verb: Most common in very long sentences, when you've forgotten the identity of the
subject. bzw/ sentences ftZu ne;o n;h subject dh identity G[Zb iKd/ jK.
Incorrect: A serious problem with our democracy are the large number of political parties.
Correct: A serious problem with our democracy is the large number of political
parties.
Incorrect: The most interesting part of the novel are its last chapters
Correct: The most interesting part of the novel is its last chapters
Anchor 8
Now we will learn about Common Misspellings
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So students I'm just going to make a list of words that many people mis-spell. Obviously, I
can't list them all. pfuU j[D fJ; list ~ fXnkB Bkb t/y' fJj e[ZM nfij/ words jB fiBQK ftZu ne;o
rbZsh j[zdh j?.
Definitely: I had to name this one first because it is my biggest grievance. So many people spell
it with an "A", as in "definately." This is incorrect.
a lot absence accommodate address
argument believe business category
certain collectible commitment conscience
conscious dependent desperate disappoint
embarrass exaggerate exercise existence
fascinate foreign government grateful
independentirrelevant judgment lightning
millennium mischievous misspell necessary
occasionally panicky possession practically
presence privilege probably receive
recommend restaurant sacrilegious separate
temporary until usually villain
weird
Anchor 9
Well students, did you see these are few simple and small things which we need to pay
attention.
It’s very easy to make spelling errors as we try to be quick and productive. A basic rule should
be to always spell check, so that we do not make any mistake again. This means we need to do
a careful proof reading job after we spell check our work.
Now let us see few sentences which show some common errors.
Errors with nouns
INCORRECT CORRECT
The deers are very agile. The deer are very agile
No information have come. No information has come.
We had a good play of hockey. We had a good game of hockey.
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Errors with adjectives
INCORRECT CORRECT
She is elder than I. she is older than I.
From the two he is smart. He is smarter of the two.
He is pretty young man. He is a handsome young man.
Errors with verbs
INCORRECT CORRECT
He drank all the soup. He ate all the soup.
He made a lecture. He gave a lecture.
I always put my money in this box. I always keep my money in this box.
Errors with prepositions
INCORRECT CORRECT
Please listen me. Please listen to me.
The matter was put in front of them. The matter was put before of them.
They called of the strike. They called off the strike.
He is angry on me. He is angry with me.
I met with your friend there. I met your friend there.
Errors with articles
INCORRECT CORRECT
Enclose it in a envelope. Enclose it in an envelope.
Mecca is sacred to Muslims. The Mecca is sacred to Muslims.
I have lot of work to do. I have a lot of work to do..
Where to use a and an.
A,E, I, O, U dh initial sound Bkb F[o{ j'D tkb/ words (nouns) Bkb an bZrdk j?. pkeh
;ko/ words Bkb a bZrdk j?.
Example:- An apple, An owl, An inkpot, An elephant, An operation, An orange
A boy, A cat, A rat, A bat, A mat.
Errors in narration and complex sentences.
Incorrect:- The teacher said that Meera is late.
Correct:- The teacher said that Meera was late.
Incorrect:- Rahim Khan knew that his wife will leave him.
Correct:- Rahim Khan knew that his wife would leave him.
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Note:- If the principal clause is in the past tense the subordinate clause is always followed by
past tense
Only exception is the sentences with universal truth.
Example :- The teacher said that the earth is round.
(Said is past tense but the verb is in the subordinate clause is in present in definite
because it’s a universal truth).
Errors related to voice
Some passive voices have certain verbs such as laugh, shock believe take some prepositions
which cannot be dropped.
A passive verb have the structure Be plus third form of verb; the use of preposition ‘by’ followed
an agent is not enough.
Example:- It’s not believed by me.
It’s not believed in by me.
Example:- He was laughed by all.
He was laughed at by all.
Errors:- Verbs wrongly used
Uncle Podger hanged the picture.
(hang- hung- hung) refers to the hanging of pictures, maps, coats, etc.
Hang –hanged-hanged; refers to putting a person to death by putting a rope round
the neck and hanging.
Next example is
He lay down on the ground.
He lie down on the ground. (lie-lay-lain)
Example:- The hen has lain an egg in our courtyard.
The hen has laid an egg in our courtyard. (lay-laid-laid-).
Example:- She cutted her finger.
She cut her finger. (cut-cut-cut)
Nouns misunderstood. For example
Example:- Mathematics are a useful subject.
Mathematics is a useful subject.
Example:- Measles are an infectious disease.
Measles is an infectious disease.
Mathematics and Measles are singular nouns but misunderstood as plural nouns because of the
S after them.
Students did you see another set of common errors.
Now let us see a few exercises which talk about COMMON ERRORS
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ANCHOR 10
Below is a list of typical grammar mistakes. Correct them:
(Get the correction done firstly by highlighting the error and correct the same.)
I asked to the doctor a question.
To is not to be used. So the correct sentence will be
I asked the doctor a question.
We're going out together for 10 years.
Replace for with since
We're going out together since 10 years.
His parents want/wants that he studies economics.
The correct choice is
Want therefore the correct sentence will be His parents want that he studies
economics.
She must to be a great tennis player.
To is not to be used.
So it will be She must be a great tennis player.
Next sentence is
It’s for that I'm not going to the party.
Here use it is instead of it’s
You are right so the correct sentence will be
It is for that I'm not going to the party.
Next example is
It was the house of my aunt.
Here this sentence will be written as It’s the house of my aunt.
Next
I saw Sue before to come here.
Here to come will be replaced with coming
Now this sentence will be written as I saw Sue before coming here.
Next example is
We were 16 people in the group.
Can you find any mistake?
You are right. There is no mistake in this sentence.
Let’s check out this last example
I don't used to have breakfast so early.
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Here don’t will be replaced with am not
It will now be like this
I am not used to have breakfast so early.
Now students have you ever paid attention to the fact that our small mistakes can actually
change the meaning of the sentences we speak.
Just listen to this.
A dialogue between a countryman and a townsman , bringing out the comparative advantages
of town and country life.
VO 2 With TEXT ON SCREEN (Create a character of two men 35 yrs and 40 yrs in bubble
conversation)
Smith: Good morning, Mr. Jones. It is a long time since I saw you in town. Are you still
staying long in that place?
Jones: Good morning (with little annoying expression) no, Mr. Smith, I only came up on
business for a few hours.
Smith: Hmm running away from city.
Jones: No not, me. I don’t find much enjoyment in this smoky, noisy and crowded place.
Smith: Ohh, ok so what about your mother? Is she still ok?
Jones: (with great anger) what do you mean by this?
What kind of a person you are? How can you talk like this?
Smith: (unaware of his mistake) What happened Mr. Jones? Why are you so annoyed?
What did I say? I just asked your mother’s health.
Jones: Look at your words as if my mother being fine is a problem to you.
Smith: Oh God! what are you saying? Why will I have any problem with your mother?
Rather I wish best of health for her. And by the way what were my words can you kindly
repeat them for me.
Jones: You know you said what about your mother? Is she still ok? What do you mean by
still?
Smith: Ohhh, it’s a slip of tongue. I am extremely sorry Mr. Jones. I didn’t want to say
that. It was simply slip of tongue.
Jones: Mr. Smith kindly be very careful in using your words. They can put you in some
deep trouble sometime in your life.
Smith: Yes Mr. Jones. I’ll remember your advice. Thank you and sorry once again.
ANCHOR 11
So students what did you notice?
Just use of one single word ‘still’ had changed the atmosphere completely.
Two people who were happily exchanging words got into serious argument just because of one
small and simple mistake.
Now you understood why we have been mentioning from the beginning that these mistakes are
very small and simple but prove to be really big.
Now let us read some key points on how we can avoid these mistakes.
• Make the Dictionary your Friend. ( Let the image appear when the dictionary image is
pronounce)
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Look into your dictionary for 10 minutes every day.
• Explore Ways to Improve. ( show the images with VO at the background)
Please see the resource section for guides to grammar and selected
topics. If you study these guides for 30 minutes a day for one month I
guarantee that you’ll be a better writer and make fewer mistakes as
well.
Yes these are points which will help you in improving your mistakes.
Students I expect you to have understood the topic by now. If you have any query you can ask
me in the next class. Now there is a small exercise for you to do.
Write the correct sentence of these:-
Incorrect: This is Manishs pen.
Correct: This is Manish’s pen.
Incorrect: I visit them of and an.
Correct: I visit them off and on
Incorrect: She live in U.S.A.
Correct: She lives in U.S.A.
Incorrect: I am seeking employment.
Correct: I am seeking an employment.
Incorrect: Can I come in Sir?
Correct: May I come in Sir?
Incorrect: He married with a Indian lady.
Correct: He married an Indian lady.
Incorrect: He is rich and generous to.
Correct: He is rich and generous too.
Incorrect: He behaved cowardly.
Correct: He behaved cowardly.
Incorrect: This has been happening since a long time.
Correct: This had been happening since a long time
Incorrect: I and she are sisters.
Correct: She and I are sisters.
ANCHOR-12
With this we come to the end of our first module. We shall now move on to our next module,
especially focused on formal letters, the subject line for formal letters, as well as letters written
with different purposes. Till then, bye.
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