Thomas Carlyle said, ‘The greatest mistake is to imagine that we never err.’ No matter how sound we think we are, we still catch ourselves committing certain unpardonable faux pas! But not to worry, in the ‘Commonly Used Wrong Words (with Corrections)’ post, we will point out some of these errors so that we do not commit them anymore! After all, Lord Chesterfield submitted that ‘Honest error is to be pitied, not ridiculed.’ Therefore, this post is set to point out and correct some of these errors as Charles Caleb Colton points out that ‘Ignorance is a blank sheet on which we may write; but error is a scribbled one from which we must first erase.’ So here we go!

Table of Contents:
Commonly Used Wrong Words (with Corrections)
Unnecessary Repetitive Words
ATM Machine
SUV Vehicle or MPV Vehicle
PIN Number
Reverse Back
Wrong use of Prepositions
Order for
Comprise of
Request for
Discuss about
Wrongly Used Words
Coloured TV
Matured Boy
Travelling Bag
Driving License
Running Nose / Smelling Feet
Working Experience
Double Parking
Plate Number
Wake Keeping or Wake Keep
Enjoy
Go slow (with reference to heavy traffic)
Night vigil
Convocate
Emphasy
Round off vs Round up
Lend vs Borrow
Off/On vs put off/Put On
Take personal / Take Serious
I am hearing you / I am seeing you
Severally
Closing Words

For the purpose of clarity, we will classify these errors under various headings…

Unnecessary Repetitive Words
There are some words we unnecessarily and ignorantly or inadvertently repeat each time we say them. They amount to mindless or needless repetitions. In English, we refer to them as redundant expressions, tautology or pleonasm! They include the following:

ATM Machine
Have you said at any time any of these sentences?

*The ATM Machine is not dispensing cash.
*Not a single ATM Machine is working in that bank.
What is ATM? It is an abbreviation for ‘Automated Teller Machine’! Did you say it is an acronym? No, it is not! So you are not aware that abbreviation, alphabetism or better still, initialism is different from acronym. You need to check out the post on Word Formation Process in English for clarity.

Back to our discussion, the word ‘machine’ is already in the abbreviation ATM; consequently, it is needless to use it after the abbreviation. So, with reference to the two sentences above, it would be correct and appropriate to say:

The ATM is not dispensing cash.
Not a single ATM is working in that bank.
The new bank has installed four additional ATMs in strategic locations in the town.
Can you dash to the ATM and get me some cash?
Unbelievable! There is only one ATM in Antarctica!
I want to believe this error will not proceed from you again! So inform your friends and let us rid our society of linguistic errors! We are not through; let us see some more…

SUV Vehicle or MPV Vehicle
The word ‘vehicle’ is a hyponym as there are different types with different shapes and sizes. We have cars, buses, vans, minivans or minibuses, double-deckers, skibobs, coupés, dodgems, sledges, sleighs, etc. in further classifications, we refer to some as MPVs and to some as SUVs. MPV, just like ATM, is an abbreviation for ‘Multi-purpose Vehicle’, while SUV is an abbreviation for ‘Sport-utility Vehicle’. So you see that the letter ‘v’ in both abbreviations stands for ‘vehicle’ and therefore, it is pleonastic or tautological to say ‘MPV vehicle’ or ‘SUV Vehicle’. So rather than say:

*He just bought a new SUV vehicle.
*The family needs an MPV vehicle and not a car.
It would be correct and appropriate to say:

He just bought a new SUV.
The family needs an MPV and not a car.
SUVs are good for rough terrains.
We are not done! We must extirpate all these errors! Let us see some more…

PIN Number
‘Poor me, I can’t seem to remember my PIN number…What will I do now?’ I am cocksure you have said this and you have heard others say this times without number. You want to retrieve your lost SIM card, you talk about PIN number. You talk about ATM and the next thing you say is PIN number, so many things that have to do with security, you talk about PIN number! Do you even know that the letter ‘n’ in the abbreviation PIN stands for ‘number’? Just like in the cases of ATM and SUV/MPV, this is a pleonastic expression. Just say PIN and it would be okay. Do not be impervious to adjustment! Do not go on saying ‘PIN number’!

PIN means ‘Personal Identification Number’ in whatever way you make use of it. I believe you will not do that anymore. When next you hear someone say ‘PIN number’, do well to correct them.

Read more: https://akademia.com.ng/commonly-used-wrong-words-corrections/

Do they know how to speak our local dialect correctly??

Driving license is correct

Nope. I disagree. The correct word is driver's license..