Common English Mistakes: 48 Errors Fixed with Examples
Even advanced learners repeat the same handful of errors. This reference covers the most frequent mistakes across six categories, shows what goes wrong, and gives you the correct version so you can stop making them for good.
48 items · 6 topics
"I am student."
Missing article before a countable singular noun — should be "a student".
"Correct: I am a student."
"She has the cat."
Using "the" for something not previously mentioned — should be "a cat".
"Correct: She has a cat."
"He went to the school."
"The" should be omitted with institutions used for their primary purpose.
"Correct: He went to school."
"I like the music."
Uncountable nouns used in a general sense do not take "the".
"Correct: I like music."
"Give me an information."
"Information" is uncountable and cannot use "a/an".
"Correct: Give me some information."
"I have headache."
Common ailments require "a" before them.
"Correct: I have a headache."
"She is best teacher."
Superlatives always require "the".
"Correct: She is the best teacher."
"We visited a Amazon."
Proper nouns for rivers and specific geography use "the", not "a".
"Correct: We visited the Amazon."
"I am waiting since two hours."
"Since" is used with a point in time; "for" is used with a duration.
"Correct: I have been waiting for two hours."
"She is married with him."
The correct preposition is "to" after "married".
"Correct: She is married to him."
"We arrived to Paris."
"Arrive" takes "in" for cities and "at" for specific places.
"Correct: We arrived in Paris."
"I depend of you."
"Depend" collocates with "on", not "of".
"Correct: I depend on you."
"He is good in English."
The correct preposition after "good" describing a skill is "at".
"Correct: He is good at English."
"Listen the music."
"Listen" always requires the preposition "to" before its object.
"Correct: Listen to the music."
"I am interested about history."
"Interested" takes "in", not "about".
"Correct: I am interested in history."
"She lives in the 5th Avenue."
Street names do not take "the"; use "on" for streets.
"Correct: She lives on 5th Avenue."
"I am living here since 2010."
For actions that started in the past and continue now, use present perfect continuous.
"Correct: I have been living here since 2010."
"Did you finished the report?"
"Did" already marks past tense; the main verb must be in base form.
"Correct: Did you finish the report?"
"When I will arrive, I will call."
In time clauses with "when", use present simple, not future.
"Correct: When I arrive, I will call."
"She has went to the store."
"Has" requires the past participle "gone", not the simple past "went".
"Correct: She has gone to the store."
"Yesterday I have seen him."
Definite past time words like "yesterday" require simple past, not present perfect.
"Correct: Yesterday I saw him."
"I was study all night."
Past continuous requires the auxiliary "was/were" plus the -ing form.
"Correct: I was studying all night."
"He don't know the answer."
Third-person singular in simple present needs "doesn't", not "don't".
"Correct: He doesn't know the answer."
"They are agree with us."
"Agree" is a stative verb; it does not use the continuous form.
"Correct: They agree with us."
"He made a travel to Japan."
"Travel" as a noun is usually uncountable; use "trip" or "journey" instead.
"Correct: He took a trip to Japan."
"Can you borrow me your pen?"
"Borrow" means to take; "lend" means to give. Offer uses "lend".
"Correct: Can you lend me your pen?"
"I am very boring in class."
"Boring" describes something dull; "bored" describes how a person feels.
"Correct: I am very bored in class."
"She said me the truth."
"Tell" takes a direct object (person); "say" does not.
"Correct: She told me the truth."
"I need to make my homework."
"Homework" is done, not made. The correct verb is "do".
"Correct: I need to do my homework."
"He is very sympathetic."
"Sympathetic" means compassionate — it does not mean nice or likeable.
"Correct: He is very kind / likeable."
"I will assist to the meeting."
"Assist" means to help someone; to be present use "attend".
"Correct: I will attend the meeting."
"The exam was very hard for me to pass it."
When the subject of the sentence is the exam, "it" is redundant after an infinitive clause.
"Correct: The exam was very hard for me to pass."
"Its a beautiful day."
"Its" is a possessive pronoun; the contraction of "it is" needs an apostrophe.
"Correct: It's a beautiful day."
"I like cooking, my sister likes baking."
Joining two independent clauses with only a comma creates a comma splice.
"Correct: I like cooking, and my sister likes baking."
"The childrens books are here."
Plural possessive of "children" (already plural) needs the apostrophe after the word.
"Correct: The children's books are here."
"She asked me, "where are you going?""
The first word of a direct quotation must be capitalised.
"Correct: She asked me, "Where are you going?""
"However, I did not agree with him"
A sentence must end with a full stop, question mark, or exclamation mark.
"Correct: However, I did not agree with him."
"I bought: apples oranges and grapes."
A colon is only used before a list when it follows a complete clause; items also need commas.
"Correct: I bought apples, oranges, and grapes."
"It's the dogs bowl."
The apostrophe must be placed before the "s" to show singular possession.
"Correct: It's the dog's bowl."
"Lets go to the beach!"
"Let's" is a contraction of "let us" and requires an apostrophe.
"Correct: Let's go to the beach!"
"I am very sensible."
"Sensible" means practical and reasonable — not emotionally sensitive ("sensible" ≠ "sensitive").
"Correct for emotional meaning: I am very sensitive."
"She is actually very simpatic."
"Sympathique" (French/Spanish "simpático") means likeable, but in English "sympathetic" means compassionate.
"Correct: She is very likeable / friendly."
"I will present you my parents."
"Present" can mean introduce, but the natural phrasing is "introduce you to my parents".
"Correct: I will introduce you to my parents."
"He is a very large person."
In many European languages "largo/large" means tall; in English "large" means big in size.
"Correct for height: He is a very tall person."
"Can you control the students?"
"Contrôler" in French means to check/inspect; "control" in English means to command or restrain.
"Correct: Can you check on the students?"
"I am desolated to hear that."
"Désolé" in French means sorry, but "desolated" in English sounds extreme; use "sorry".
"Correct: I am so sorry to hear that."
"The conference was very actual."
"Actual" means real/existing, not current. "Actuel" in French/Spanish = current.
"Correct: The conference was very current / up to date."
"I visited a fabric in Lyon."
"Fabrique" in French/Spanish means factory; "fabric" in English means cloth/textile.
"Correct: I visited a factory in Lyon."
Frequently Asked Questions
What are the most common English mistakes learners make?
The most frequent errors fall into six areas: article misuse (a/an/the), preposition confusion (in/on/at/to), tense errors (present perfect vs. simple past), incorrect word choice (borrow vs. lend), punctuation mistakes (apostrophes and comma splices), and false cognates from learners' first languages.
How can I stop making the same English mistakes?
The most effective method is massive exposure to correct English through listening and reading — not memorising rules. When you hear or read a correct phrase hundreds of times, the right version becomes automatic. Reviewing a checklist of your personal error patterns before writing also helps.
Why do false cognates cause so many English errors?
False cognates look or sound like a word in your native language but mean something different in English. Because the brain recognises a familiar-looking word, it skips the verification step. Learners from Spanish, French, Portuguese, and Russian backgrounds encounter this frequently.
Is it bad to make grammar mistakes when speaking English?
Making mistakes is a normal and necessary part of learning. The goal is to communicate effectively, not to speak perfectly. Focus on mistakes that cause misunderstanding — such as wrong tense or confusing vocabulary — rather than minor errors that native speakers barely notice.
How long does it take to eliminate common English mistakes?
With consistent exposure to authentic English content, most learners see a significant reduction in their most common errors within 3–6 months. The key is encountering correct patterns repeatedly in meaningful context, not drilling rules in isolation.
The fastest way to eliminate mistakes permanently is hearing correct English in context — not memorising rules.
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