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Some Grammatical Mistakes You Make And Things You Say Wrong. - Education (9) - Nairaland

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Re: Some Grammatical Mistakes You Make And Things You Say Wrong. by Veebliz(m): 12:38am On May 02, 2020
jokolo282:
Very educative pls op contact me if you have a group where i can learn more of these.
I appreciate it

I do have a group on WhatsApp, but it's an English and Spanish exchange group.

1 Like

Re: Some Grammatical Mistakes You Make And Things You Say Wrong. by NiCurious: 12:46am On May 02, 2020
Alzirida:


Pls can u help me with.

I am
I'm
Am i

I am
I am happy, I am at home, I am eating.
These examples make a statement about myself.

I'm
I'm happy, I'm at home, I'm eating.
These examples make the same statements about myself.
I'm is simply a contraction of I am, and means the same thing, but is informal.

Am I
When asking a question about one's self, reverse the word order of I am to am I.
Examples: Am I ready for this exam? Am I too tired to do this? Am I tall enough to touch the ceiling?
It is the same syntax used when asking questions about other people.
Are you ready for this exam? Is he too tired to do this? Are we tall enough to touch the ceiling?
To answer by making a statement, turn the verb and subject around again, to subject and verb:
I am ready for this exam. You are ready for this exam. I am too tired to do this. He is too tired to do this. I am tall enough to touch the ceiling. We are tall enough to touch the ceiling.

1 Like

Re: Some Grammatical Mistakes You Make And Things You Say Wrong. by NiCurious: 1:00am On May 02, 2020
mhmsadyq:
the verb - to make
The verb – to allow etc.

whenever "to" comes before a verb in a sentence,
the verbal word goes together with the "to" before it.
Such phrase is known as ADJUNCT in English. So in the sentence
This picture makes me TO remember my past.
the verb is "Make" while "TO remember" is an adjunct.
The sentence is also CORRECT.

Sorry, the correct form is This picture makes me remember my past.
As the OP said, it is only in a passive construction that the "to" is included.
The children were made to remember their past.
Re: Some Grammatical Mistakes You Make And Things You Say Wrong. by NiCurious: 1:03am On May 02, 2020
Charles545:


I need your attention please.
:
Agreed, ADVISE is in the verb form but how is ADVICE in the noun form; considering the definition of a NOUN
:
kindly clarify

I sought a lawyer for advice. (noun)
The lawyer advised me. (verb)
Dad's advice is usually good. (noun)
Dad advises me. (verb)
Re: Some Grammatical Mistakes You Make And Things You Say Wrong. by NiCurious: 1:15am On May 02, 2020
Phccareers:
Good one OP. The correct way to have written your title is "Some grammatical mistakes you make and things you say WRONGLY". Pls take note of this for future purposes.

I left there ANGRILY not I left there angry.
He acted RIGHTLY not he acted right.
They did it GOOD.

The above are all adverbs describing the verbs that come before them.


Two out or three. smiley They did it well. Good is the adjective, well is the adverb.
Re: Some Grammatical Mistakes You Make And Things You Say Wrong. by Kingchineme6(m): 1:27am On May 02, 2020
PrincessB1:

I did.

What about you?
Honestly, I didn't. cheesy
Re: Some Grammatical Mistakes You Make And Things You Say Wrong. by NiCurious: 1:31am On May 02, 2020
THONYWHYTE001:


To make it easier, take note of the tone. Advice has a risen tone while advise has a falling tone. Knowing the tone will help you fix it well in a sentence. "open to correction".

smiley Since you're open to correction, and I'm in a correcting kind of mood...English is not a tonal language the way Yoruba is, for example. But it has stressed and unstressed syllables, which basically means that stressed syllables are spoken with more emphasis than unstressed ones. In both advice and advise, the emphasis is on the second syllable. The ce ending in advice has an unvoiced s sound--a hiss--while the se ending in advise has a voiced z sound--a buzz.
Re: Some Grammatical Mistakes You Make And Things You Say Wrong. by NiCurious: 1:37am On May 02, 2020
placeofallure:


Advice is a noun.
Advise is a verb.

Usage:
*I will advise the FG to hold back on easing lockdown restrictions.

*To ease lockdown measures is an advice the FG is unwilling to consider.

In the first sentence, "advise" is an action the speaker intended to do.
I will dance, I will play, I will run etc.

In the second sentence, "advice" is a noun. The name you give to somebody or something. Something like a suggestion, opinion etc.

I hope this helped.


Excepting that advice is uncountable, so: To ease lockdown measures is advice that the FG is unwilling to consider. smiley
Re: Some Grammatical Mistakes You Make And Things You Say Wrong. by NiCurious: 1:46am On May 02, 2020
Poloyanabo1:
is there any word like staffs?
or it should always be put as staff, no matter how many they're?

Staff, as in the employees working somewhere, is always singular, whether it is just one person or a thousand. This is the most common use of the word staff, and I'm sure it's the one you're referring to.

There is another meaning for staff, which is a stout stick, like a tall walking stick. The plural in that case is staves.
Re: Some Grammatical Mistakes You Make And Things You Say Wrong. by NiCurious: 2:00am On May 02, 2020
gr8tone:
I am not confortable with this sentence , "I am having a headache" The use of the article "a" shows that headache is a countable noun. How will it sound if I say I am having headaches? Very weird to me. Though it may be correct, I wouldn't know. Just a local man

It is idiomatic to say "I have a headache" rather than "I am having a headache". That is, if I call and ask you how you are today. If I call and ask how you have been this week, you might reply "I have been having headaches. I have had a headache every day since Sunday. I have had six headaches this week." (Heaven forbid, not wishing you ill. smiley ) Headaches are countable, but we don't like them in the singular, much less in the plural!
Re: Some Grammatical Mistakes You Make And Things You Say Wrong. by Charles545: 2:11am On May 02, 2020
NiCurious:


I sought a lawyer for advice. (noun)
The lawyer advised me. (verb)
Dad's advice is usually good. (noun)
Dad advises me. (verb)

You see, I use these words appropriately when writing but all the while I don't know (maybe I can't remember) that one is in the verb and the other in noun form.
Thank you for the add. Someone else (Timijo) has cleared my curiosity.
Cheers
Re: Some Grammatical Mistakes You Make And Things You Say Wrong. by omonnakoda: 2:15am On May 02, 2020
NiCurious:


It would be more idiomatic to say "I have a headache" than "I am having a headache". That is, if I call and ask you how you are today. If I call and ask how you have been this week, you might reply "I have been having headaches. I have had a headache every day since Sunday. I have had six headaches this week." (Heaven forbid, not wishing you ill. smiley ) Headaches are countable, but we don't like them in the singular, much less in the plural!
Sorry but idioms don't have any place in this example.
Re: Some Grammatical Mistakes You Make And Things You Say Wrong. by NiCurious: 2:27am On May 02, 2020
omonnakoda:

Sorry but idioms don't have any place in this example.

What do you mean, please?
That I should rather have said "I am having a headache" is not idiomatic English, but is perfectly understandable? Agreed.
Re: Some Grammatical Mistakes You Make And Things You Say Wrong. by omonnakoda: 2:29am On May 02, 2020
gr8tone:
I am not confortable with this sentence , "I am having a headache" The use of the article "a" shows that headache is a countable noun. How will it sound if I say I am having headaches? Very weird to me. Though it may be correct, I wouldn't know. Just a local man
Depends on whether the headache is physical or metaphorical.
You have only one head(usually.) so can have one headache at a time even though some headaches might be so bad as to feel like several.in this usage saying I have headaches is illogical but not ungrammatical as such it is a problem of pragmatics and not a solecism.
A metaphorical headache is simply a "problem" of which you can have 99 and........
Re: Some Grammatical Mistakes You Make And Things You Say Wrong. by omonnakoda: 2:37am On May 02, 2020
NiCurious:


What do you mean, please?
That I should rather have said "I am having a headache" is not idiomatic English, but is perfectly understandable? Agreed.
Idiomatic doesn't come into it at all. Using the word in that sentence is incongruous and indicates that you don't know what idiomatic means.
I expecti that is likely to make you get defensive but it is the simple truth.

Just drop " idiomatic" it doesn't have any place in that discussion
Re: Some Grammatical Mistakes You Make And Things You Say Wrong. by NiCurious: 5:19am On May 02, 2020
omonnakoda:

Idiomatic doesn't come into it at all. Using the word in that sentence is incongruous and indicates that you don't know what idiomatic means.
I expecti that is likely to make you get defensive but it is the simple truth.

Just drop " idiomatic" it doesn't have any place in that discussion

To clear up your misunderstanding of my meaning, I quote four senses of the word "idiom", root of "idiomatic", per the Collins English Dictionary:

1. (which I think is the sense you are familiar with): a group of words whose meaning cannot be predicted from the meanings of the constituent words, as for example (it was raining) cats and dogs.
2. (the sense that I am using): linguistic usage that is grammatical and natural to native speakers of a language. My example: "I am having a headache" is not idiomatic English (which is what the discussion is about).
3. the characteristic vocabulary or usage of a specific human group or subject.
4. the characteristic artistic style of an individual, school, period, etc.
The word idiom entered the language in the 16th century.
From idiom, the words idiomatic [adjective], idiomatical [adverb], idiomatically [adverb], and idiomaticalness [noun] are constructed.

So yes, I am defending my position, but is that the same as getting defensive?

Back to sleep, now.
Re: Some Grammatical Mistakes You Make And Things You Say Wrong. by Daminovic: 6:26am On May 02, 2020
Veebliz:
Some grammatical mistakes you make and things you say wrong.


Hello, everyone. Before I shoot, I’d like you to read this:

After learning some Spanish and having to correct a lot of English in WhatsApp groups, I’ve discovered that some of us say some things wrong. Some like saying things like “English is not our language”, “Who English epp? (Who does English help?)” “Does it add money to my account?” especially when you correct them. But most of these are said out of ignorance. English is not your language, but why do you use it? English has helped a lot of people, YES! It has. Why else do we use English to teach at school? In fact, more research has been done in English than in any other language, 98% of scientific materials published today are in English, I’m not saying that other languages are inferior, but the truth is that, some people do need to stop being ignorant and face it – English really DOES matter…and YES – it can add money to your account in so many ways; you think about it.

Yeah, I feel like it’s important for me to add this: I’ve come across some Nigerians who speak English as their first tongue; I do as well, so the idea of saying English is not our language doesn’t make any sense at all. I have no problem with anybody speaking any indigenous language.

The English language is not a foreign language to Nigeria, it has mixed with our cultures in a unique way, and therefore has become ours – one of our languages, even though I don’t speak the language of my indigenous tribe, I still have some of their cultural values instilled in me, I cherish and respect them.

Aha! I must not skip this; I've interacted with Brits and Americans on the internet, so I see them make silly mistakes as well, but the ones I've written here are some of the mistakes I see my country people make often. Let’s see some of the grammatical mistakes people make and things they say wrong.



I am Nigerian, so I speak more Nigerian English, I don’t hate it, I just like when people make good use of it because I know what it feels like when you murder someone's




Ermmmm, one last thing before the final full stop: This is for people who can’t do without starting a sentence with or using “Am”; What exactly is wrong? Please stop making this horrible mistake, if you can’t use the contraction: “I’m…” then use: “I am…”
It’s not hard work. The pronoun [b]I
is just one letter.

Thanks for reading.

Veebliz.

English grammar is cool
Re: Some Grammatical Mistakes You Make And Things You Say Wrong. by Veebliz(m): 7:39am On May 02, 2020
Daminovic:

i just started developing interest in learning English grammar and i need some assistance. How can i get through to you pleaseeee.

Here's my WhatsApp number: +2348066222055
Re: Some Grammatical Mistakes You Make And Things You Say Wrong. by babseg(m): 8:58am On May 02, 2020
Veebliz:



grin Yeah! smiley I know about that. These expressions are very cool to me and I use most of them.

So what can you say about the Chinese, Japanese and the Russian . They do speak English as thier official language but they are more advanced than us.

I dont know how you got to the point that success is directly proportional to language.
Re: Some Grammatical Mistakes You Make And Things You Say Wrong. by emmaella: 9:53am On May 02, 2020
Veebliz:


grin grin I knew someone like this would comment. I'm afraid you might need to read everything again. wink Shakespeare spoke older English, there's a huge difference between that and modern English. What you hear nowadays is pretty much modern English, so saying he used incorrect grammar in his time is wrong, get it? The language has evolved over the years but much of its grammar hasn't changed, so what you've stated doesn't make any sense at all.
i like your post it's educative but in no 6. Do you say take an S or take a S? Is there any word in English language where the article (an) precedes S? Do we have an student or a student, an son or a sun, an social or a social. Just asking please explain. Thanks
Re: Some Grammatical Mistakes You Make And Things You Say Wrong. by omonnakoda: 9:54am On May 02, 2020
NiCurious:


To clear up your misunderstanding of my meaning, I quote four senses of the word "idiom", root of "idiomatic", per the Collins English Dictionary:

1. (which I think is the sense you are familiar with): a group of words whose meaning cannot be predicted from the meanings of the constituent words, as for example (it was raining) cats and dogs.
2. (the sense that I am using): linguistic usage that is grammatical and natural to native speakers of a language. My example: "I am having a headache" is not idiomatic English (which is what the discussion is about).
3. the characteristic vocabulary or usage of a specific human group or subject.
4. the characteristic artistic style of an individual, school, period, etc.
The word idiom entered the language in the 16th century.
From idiom, the words idiomatic [adjective], idiomatical [adverb], idiomatically [adverb], and idiomaticalness [noun] are constructed.

So yes, I am defending my position, but is that the same as getting defensive?

Back to sleep, now.
I knew you would be defensive. One of the hardest things in this world is to admit you were wrong. Cultivate the habit.
Idiomatic expressions have little to do with grammar and indeed often are grammatically wrong
A few idiomatic expressions from Nigeria

Story done get K leg
Water done pass garri
No shaking
Shine your eye



From elsewhere
Call it a day
Speak of the devil
I was pulling your leg
Take chill pill

Etc.

As such idioms are "stock phrases " often with a different meaning from the literal meaning of the words and that have common currency I.e they are clearly understood among a particular group


What you have written is face saving twaddle. Admitting you are wrong is the first step to learning

Using "idiomatic" in that sentence was wholly incongruous
Re: Some Grammatical Mistakes You Make And Things You Say Wrong. by lonikit: 10:19am On May 02, 2020
omonnakoda:

I knew you would be defensive. One of the hardest things in this world is to admit you were wrong. Cultivate the habit.
Idiomatic expressions have little to do with grammar and indeed often are grammatically wrong
A few idiomatic expressions from Nigeria

Story done get K leg
Water done pass garri
No shaking
Shine your eye



From elsewhere
Call it a day
Speak of the devil
I was pulling your leg
Take chill pill

Etc.

As such idioms are "stock phrases " often with a different meaning from the literal meaning of the words and that have common currency I.e they are clearly understood among a particular group


What you have written is face saving twaddle. Admitting you are wrong is the first step to learning

Using "idiomatic" in that sentence was wholly incongruous

God bless you.
Re: Some Grammatical Mistakes You Make And Things You Say Wrong. by Veebliz(m): 10:51am On May 02, 2020
babseg:


So what can you say about the Chinese, Japanese and the Russian . They do speak English as thier official language but they are more advanced than us.

I dont know how you got to the point that success is directly proportional to language.

Judging by your reply, you didn't understand the message. undecided
Re: Some Grammatical Mistakes You Make And Things You Say Wrong. by Veebliz(m): 11:21am On May 02, 2020
emmaella:
i like your post it's educative but in no 6. Do you say take an S or take a S? Is there any word in English language where the article (an) precedes S? Do we have an student or a student, an son or a sun, an social or a social. Just asking please explain. Thanks


It's: take an S.
So many people usually get confused when it comes to using the indefinite articles: "a" and "an". I have seen people who think that the indefinite article "a" is used before words that begin with a consonant letter and "an" before words that begin with a vowel letter. This is not true, of course. The indefinite article "a" is used before words that begin with a consonant sound. For example:

A university. NOT An university.
A unique way. NOT An unique way.
A usual thing, A European, A euphemism.

If you look at the adjectives and nouns above, you'll notice that they're spelt with vowels, but when you sound them out, you get a Y sound, which is a consonant sound.

The indefinite article "an" is used with words that begin with a vowel sound.

An example ✓

So you would say: The word - search begins with an S. The S is a letter that has its own pronunciation - it's pronounced "es". Try sounding out all the letters of the English alphabet and you can easily know which article to use.


Some people do also get confused about words that begin with an H. The H can be either pronounced or silent.
This is a happy person. ✓
This is an happy person. ×
It will take an hour. ✓
It will take a hour. ×
You're an honest person. ✓
That jam was a hit. ✓

We received an SOS from that area last week. ✓

We received a SOS from that area last week. ×

I will send you an SOS message. ✓

I will send you a SOS message. ×

I saw a UFO last week. ✓

I saw an UFO last week. ×

It's pretty easy. Just remember: it has to do with the sound.

1 Like

Re: Some Grammatical Mistakes You Make And Things You Say Wrong. by CLEVER123(m): 1:26pm On May 02, 2020
Who English EPP na my mama language ni?
Re: Some Grammatical Mistakes You Make And Things You Say Wrong. by lizwisdom: 1:28pm On May 02, 2020
2092850174 uba help a broda to survive just for today i just lost my cousin my only sponsore
Re: Some Grammatical Mistakes You Make And Things You Say Wrong. by emmaella: 1:52pm On May 02, 2020
Veebliz:



It's: take an S.
So many people usually get confused when it comes to using the indefinite articles: "a" and "an". I have seen people who think that the indefinite article "a" is used before words that begin with a consonant letter and "an" before words that begin with a vowel letter. This is not true, of course. The indefinite article "a" is used before words that begin with a constant sound. For example:

A university. NOT An university.
A unique way. NOT An unique way.
A usual thing, A European, A euphemism.

If you look at the adjectives and nouns above, you'll notice that they're spelt with vowels, but when you sound them out, you get a Y sound, which is a consonant sound.

The indefinite article "an" is used with words that begin with a vowel sound.

An example ✓

So you would say: The word - search begins with an S. The S is a letter that has its own pronunciation - it's pronounced "es". Try sounding out all the letters of the English alphabet and you can easily know which article to use.


Some people do also get confused about words that begin with an H. The H can be either pronounced or silent.
This is a happy person. ✓
This is an happy person. ×
It will take an hour. ✓
It will take a hour. ×
You're an honest person. ✓
That jam was a hit. ✓

We received an SOS from that area last week. ✓

We received a SOS from that area last week. ×

I will send you an SOS message. ✓

I will send you a SOS message. ×

I saw a UFO last week. ✓

I saw an UFO last week. ×

It's pretty easy. Just remember: it has to do with the sound.

it's ok regards
Re: Some Grammatical Mistakes You Make And Things You Say Wrong. by placeofallure(f): 3:57pm On May 02, 2020
NiCurious:


Excepting that advice is uncountable, so: To ease lockdown measures is advice that the FG is unwilling to consider. smiley

I don't get you, Mister?
Re: Some Grammatical Mistakes You Make And Things You Say Wrong. by NiCurious: 5:18pm On May 02, 2020
Sir, it is one of several proper uses of the word "idiomatic", that I have defended. It's not personal to me: it's externally verifiable, as I have shown.

About your tactics in conducting an argument, now....
Rather than doing minimal research by checking a dictionary (even an online dictionary, at your fingertips), you continue to assert that the one meaning of[i] idiomatic[/i] that you are already familiar with, out of several, is the only meaning--even when provided with proof to the contrary, which you didn't seem to absorb. You prefer to project your own limited knowledge onto the person you are engaging with. You attempt to portray presentation of a simple, verifiable truth, as a character flaw, and you expect admission of incorrectness from the person who has shown you that your own information is incomplete. You continue to be defensive with false offensive and bluster, after you received a concrete rebuttal, which would be laughable if it wasn't so sad.

Clearly you are not interested in a discussion for the purpose of clarification and understanding, which was the broader purpose of the OP's thread in the first place. Your mind is made up, so I won't confuse you with more facts. We have nothing further to discuss. Good day.

omonnakoda:

I knew you would be defensive. One of the hardest things in this world is to admit you were wrong. Cultivate the habit.
Idiomatic expressions have little to do with grammar and indeed often are grammatically wrong
A few idiomatic expressions from Nigeria

Story done get K leg
Water done pass garri
No shaking
Shine your eye



From elsewhere
Call it a day
Speak of the devil
I was pulling your leg
Take chill pill

Etc.

As such idioms are "stock phrases " often with a different meaning from the literal meaning of the words and that have common currency I.e they are clearly understood among a particular group


What you have written is face saving twaddle. Admitting you are wrong is the first step to learning

Using "idiomatic" in that sentence was wholly incongruous
Re: Some Grammatical Mistakes You Make And Things You Say Wrong. by omonnakoda: 5:26pm On May 02, 2020
NiCurious:
Sir, it is one of several proper uses of the word "idiomatic", that I have defended. It's not personal to me: it's externally verifiable, as I have shown.

About your tactics in conducting an argument, now....
Rather than doing minimal research by checking a dictionary (even an online dictionary, at your fingertips), you continue to assert that the one meaning of[i] idiomatic[/i] that you are already familiar with, out of several, is the only meaning--even when provided with proof to the contrary, which you didn't seem to absorb. You prefer to project your own limited knowledge onto the person you are engaging with. You attempt to portray presentation of a simple, verifiable truth, as a character flaw, and you expect admission of incorrectness from the person who has shown you that your own information is incomplete. You continue to be defensive with false offensive and bluster, after you received a concrete rebuttal, which would be laughable if it wasn't so sad.

Clearly you are not interested in a discussion for the purpose of clarification and understanding, which was the broader purpose of the OP's thread in the first place. Your mind is made up, so I won't confuse you with more facts. We have nothing further to discuss. Good day.



At the risk of sounding immodest I am not an expert user of language I am a master.I am a walking dictionary .
I just instructed you but rather than humble yourself ,learn and move on you persist with this folly.
Once again your use of "idiomatic " in that sentence was incongruous and contrived.
Your bombastic attempt to save face is piteous,give it a rest and stop ridiculing yourself
Re: Some Grammatical Mistakes You Make And Things You Say Wrong. by omonnakoda: 5:30pm On May 02, 2020
NiCurious:


What do you mean, please?
That I should rather have said "I am having a headache" is not idiomatic English, but is perfectly understandable? Agreed.

Once again this is what you said.

Why is "idiomatic English " a necessary or desirable thing?
Re: Some Grammatical Mistakes You Make And Things You Say Wrong. by omonnakoda: 5:32pm On May 02, 2020
NiCurious:


It is idiomatic to say "I have a headache" rather than "I am having a headache". That is, if I call and ask you how you are today. If I call and ask how you have been this week, you might reply "I have been having headaches. I have had a headache every day since Sunday. I have had six headaches this week." (Heaven forbid, not wishing you ill. smiley ) Headaches are countable, but we don't like them in the singular, much less in the plural!
How is it idiomatic to say "I am having a headache "
What has countability of nouns got to do with idioms?

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