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10 Grammatical Errors You Should Not Make From 2020 (new Year) - Education - Nairaland

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10 Grammatical Errors You Should Not Make From 2020 (new Year) by Bscholarly: 4:33pm On Dec 31, 2019
Admin please send this to Frontpage

As Nigerians, we usually make simple grammatical errors that we are not supposed to make. I don't really blame our youths when they make mistakes in English language because it is not our mother tongue. Evidently, English was forced on Nigerians during colonization. But even at that, we did not wholesomely jettisoned our native language and custom.

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Re: 10 Grammatical Errors You Should Not Make From 2020 (new Year) by twhy111(m): 4:45pm On Dec 31, 2019
Thank you. But the queen's English wey I Sabi is enough.

Ama channel all my remaining energy into making money now. Enough of these correction.

2 Likes

Re: 10 Grammatical Errors You Should Not Make From 2020 (new Year) by reccy(m): 5:07pm On Dec 31, 2019
Good work.... Added to my archive..
Re: 10 Grammatical Errors You Should Not Make From 2020 (new Year) by Heloct(f): 5:53pm On Dec 31, 2019
"He use not to live in Lagos".

"Used he to live in Lagos".


If you say this in a gathering, they will laugh at you.

3 Likes

Re: 10 Grammatical Errors You Should Not Make From 2020 (new Year) by emae009(m): 6:02pm On Dec 31, 2019
I feel in years to come, "alright" will be adopted as a correct english grammar

1 Like

Re: 10 Grammatical Errors You Should Not Make From 2020 (new Year) by Eidris01(m): 6:12pm On Dec 31, 2019
Pls, explain these...

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Re: 10 Grammatical Errors You Should Not Make From 2020 (new Year) by sunnx(f): 8:50pm On Dec 31, 2019
grin grin
Heloct:
"He use not to live in Lagos".

"Used he to live in Lagos".


If you say this in a gathering, they will laugh at you.
grin
Heloct:
"He use not to live in Lagos".

"Used he to live in Lagos".


If you say this in a gathering, they will laugh at you.
Re: 10 Grammatical Errors You Should Not Make From 2020 (new Year) by Olibboy: 9:32pm On Dec 31, 2019
I'm outchea
Re: 10 Grammatical Errors You Should Not Make From 2020 (new Year) by pdppower: 9:44pm On Dec 31, 2019
You tried. However, 'averse to' is correct. It is not ' averse from'. Check your dictionary again.
Re: 10 Grammatical Errors You Should Not Make From 2020 (new Year) by Ayobami7(m): 9:50pm On Dec 31, 2019
Noted
Re: 10 Grammatical Errors You Should Not Make From 2020 (new Year) by Timileyin1234(m): 11:47pm On Dec 31, 2019
Sha no turn our head. The one we don cram since secondary school still dey.
Parallel to is not correct. I give up
Re: 10 Grammatical Errors You Should Not Make From 2020 (new Year) by Jodha(f): 1:24am On Jan 01, 2020
Some people still don't know when to use "am" and "I'm" yhu forgot to add that ..
Re: 10 Grammatical Errors You Should Not Make From 2020 (new Year) by Nobody: 1:39am On Jan 01, 2020
11) COME AND BE GOING
Re: 10 Grammatical Errors You Should Not Make From 2020 (new Year) by adeiza4u(m): 1:47am On Jan 01, 2020
Bscholarly:
Admin please send this to Frontpage

As Nigerians, we usually make simple grammatical errors that we are not supposed to make. I don't really blame our youths when they make mistakes in English language because it is not our mother tongue. Evidently, English was forced on Nigerians during colonization. But even at that, we did not wholesomely jettisoned our native language and custom. This is why most Nigerians still find it difficult to speak and understand the language very well.

Nonetheless, in light of the new year celebration, I, owner of Bscholarly.com, thought It wise to share and correct some of the grammatical errors Nigerians make without knowing. Note that my purpose for sharing this is so that you will not continue making them in 2020. Here we go!

10 grammatical errors you should not make from 2020

1[b]. Try And[/b]

Many a time, people use "try and" when they actually mean "try to". Logically, if you "try and do something", you  have to first of all try,  which is to make a general attempt, and finding out how do. After trying and finding how to do, you then do it. Thus, there are two actions involve, to try and to do.

On the other hand, "try to" implies the single combination of trying and doing. So, learn not to confuse the two today. 

2. Misuse of That


It is quite pathetic that most people use the word "That" as an emphatic adverb.

Examples:

"I had no idea the house was that small"

"If the weather is that bad, you had better stay at home"

This use of "That" is wrong and should be avoided. The correct forms of the above sentences are:

"I had no idea that the house was as small as that".

"If the weather is as bad as that, you had better stay at home".

3. All Right

Note that, while already, almost, almighty and altogether, are right, it is wrong to say "alright". However, there is no reason for this. But if you want your grammar to be absolutely correct, you must use "all right".

4[b]. At and About[/b]

Note that the sentence, "I shall expect you at about five o'clock" is wrong. It should rather be "I shall expect you about five o'clock". 

Reason: 
"At" applies a definite time, and "about" applies to an approximate time. So, using at about is juxtaposition of two unlikes, and should be avoided. You can only say: "I shall expect you at or about five o'clock".

5.  Ought To


Note that the construction " He ought to, didn't he?" is very wrong. Its correct form is "He ought to, oughtn't he?".

I know this sound absurd. But no doubt, it is the correct form. 

6. Parallel With


It should be noted that two lines can not be "parallel to". They can only be "parallel with" each other. So, don't say parallel to from today hence forth.

7. Use To


When people make sentences like "He used to live in Lagos" meaning he formerly lived in Lagos, it is quite understood and correct.

But where they say this negatively or in past tense, they make mistakes. Examples:

"He didn't use to live in Lagos".

"Did he use to live in Lagos?".

The correct forms of the above are:

"He use not to live in Lagos".

"Used he to live in Lagos".

Reason:

"Used to" is a peculiar idiom itself, and there is no point making its variation even more peculiar.

8. Moot Point


Note that the word "moot" does not mean the same as "mute". While the word mute simply mean silence, moot is an Anglo-Saxon town assembly, or court of justice which was a moot or mote, while the meaning place was the moot hall. 

9. Xmas

The only reason why the word "Xmas" can be tolerated is because, "X" was a Greek word for Jesus Christ. Writers who intentionally use "Xmas" having be said to be merely lazy. The most formal form is "Christmas"

10.  Averse To

Sometimes, people say they are "averse to". Meaning that they dislike. However, this is very wrong. You cannot be averse to anything, because the suffix "to" signify approach, when the opposite is intended. 

The correct form of "being averse to something" is "being averse from".

Hope this was helpful? Please leave your comments below!

Website: https://bscholarly.com (Please don't remove my link)
By: Edeh Samuel Chukwuemeka
Well, I'm not trying to downplay what you've said in this your exposition. As a Linguist, I like to make it clear to you that English as a language has regional varieties. All these 'errors' you pointed out are nuances of Nigerian variety of English, which in a true sense, constite its peculiarity just like other varieties across the world. Instead of being prescriptive about NE (Nigerian English), I think it will be more worthwhile to rather point out these linguistic peculiarities in order to promote our variety of English just as other developed countries are currently doing.
Wishing everyone a prosperous new year.

2 Likes

Re: 10 Grammatical Errors You Should Not Make From 2020 (new Year) by Sheisenough(f): 2:15am On Jan 01, 2020
Bscholarly:
Admin please send this to Frontpage

As Nigerians, we usually make simple grammatical errors that we are not supposed to make. I don't really blame our youths when they make mistakes in English language because it is not our mother tongue. Evidently, English was forced on Nigerians during colonization. But even at that, we did not wholesomely jettisoned our native language and custom. This is why most Nigerians still find it difficult to speak and understand the language very well.

Nonetheless, in light of the new year celebration, I, owner of Bscholarly.com, thought It wise to share and correct some of the grammatical errors Nigerians make without knowing. Note that my purpose for sharing this is so that you will not continue making them in 2020. Here we go!

10 grammatical errors you should not make from 2020

1[b]. Try And[/b]

Many a time, people use "try and" when they actually mean "try to". Logically, if you "try and do something", you  have to first of all try,  which is to make a general attempt, and finding out how do. After trying and finding how to do, you then do it. Thus, there are two actions involve, to try and to do.

On the other hand, "try to" implies the single combination of trying and doing. So, learn not to confuse the two today. 

2. Misuse of That


It is quite pathetic that most people use the word "That" as an emphatic adverb.

Examples:

"I had no idea the house was that small"

"If the weather is that bad, you had better stay at home"

This use of "That" is wrong and should be avoided. The correct forms of the above sentences are:

"I had no idea that the house was as small as that".

"If the weather is as bad as that, you had better stay at home".

3. All Right

Note that, while already, almost, almighty and altogether, are right, it is wrong to say "alright". However, there is no reason for this. But if you want your grammar to be absolutely correct, you must use "all right".

4[b]. At and About[/b]

Note that the sentence, "I shall expect you at about five o'clock" is wrong. It should rather be "I shall expect you about five o'clock". 

Reason: 
"At" applies a definite time, and "about" applies to an approximate time. So, using at about is juxtaposition of two unlikes, and should be avoided. You can only say: "I shall expect you at or about five o'clock".

5.  Ought To


Note that the construction " He ought to, didn't he?" is very wrong. Its correct form is "He ought to, oughtn't he?".

I know this sound absurd. But no doubt, it is the correct form. 

6. Parallel With


It should be noted that two lines can not be "parallel to". They can only be "parallel with" each other. So, don't say parallel to from today hence forth.

7. Use To


When people make sentences like "He used to live in Lagos" meaning he formerly lived in Lagos, it is quite understood and correct.

But where they say this negatively or in past tense, they make mistakes. Examples:

"He didn't use to live in Lagos".

"Did he use to live in Lagos?".

The correct forms of the above are:

"He use not to live in Lagos".

"Used he to live in Lagos".

Reason:

"Used to" is a peculiar idiom itself, and there is no point making its variation even more peculiar.

8. Moot Point


Note that the word "moot" does not mean the same as "mute". While the word mute simply mean silence, moot is an Anglo-Saxon town assembly, or court of justice which was a moot or mote, while the meaning place was the moot hall. 

9. Xmas

The only reason why the word "Xmas" can be tolerated is because, "X" was a Greek word for Jesus Christ. Writers who intentionally use "Xmas" having be said to be merely lazy. The most formal form is "Christmas"

10.  Averse To

Sometimes, people say they are "averse to". Meaning that they dislike. However, this is very wrong. You cannot be averse to anything, because the suffix "to" signify approach, when the opposite is intended. 

The correct form of "being averse to something" is "being averse from".

Hope this was helpful? Please leave your comments below!

Website: https://bscholarly.com (Please don't remove my link)
By: Edeh Samuel Chukwuemeka

I'm and Am
Re: 10 Grammatical Errors You Should Not Make From 2020 (new Year) by MVLOX(m): 2:48am On Jan 01, 2020
Is not a small something
Re: 10 Grammatical Errors You Should Not Make From 2020 (new Year) by Nobody: 4:10am On Jan 01, 2020
Bscholarly:
Examples:

"I had no idea the house was that small"

"If the weather is that bad, you had better stay at home"


This use of "That" is wrong and should be avoided.

Thanks for sharing

Are you aware that native English speakers routinely use sentences like these?
Re: 10 Grammatical Errors You Should Not Make From 2020 (new Year) by gr8cany: 8:20am On Jan 01, 2020
Thanks op but I can't use "oughtn't to" biko
Re: 10 Grammatical Errors You Should Not Make From 2020 (new Year) by abumeinben(m): 3:10pm On Jan 01, 2020
Not easy to write an article OP... So Qdos grin

One thing I'll have you to be told (hehehe) is that grammar evolves, just like Apple iOS and Android apps, especially Twitter and UC browser apps that send updates every other day.

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