Correct the Mistakes

1. We are only five on our team.

2. I would rather to work from home than come to the office.

3. We’re used to have a lot of work to do, so meeting the deadline won’t be a problem.

4. My client sent me an email but I haven’t replied her yet.

5. Maybe I’m going to finish this today.

6. Please borrow me your badge so I can get into the storage closet.

7. I can’t finish this by the end of the day. Even though I spend all day on it, I won’t finish
on time.

8. Probably, I’ll go to the beach on Saturday.

9. The Old Man and the Sea was written for Ernest Hemingway.

10. Our office is near to the airport, so it will be easy for you to get here.

11. We have many stuffs to do this week, so I don’t know if I can go to English class.

12. Despite I was tired, I came to work today.

13. If we had a gym here, I can work out after work.

14. I always try to do things very careful and make sure I do them correct. (two
mistakes)

15. We have people from all over the world here: India, United States, Venezuela,
Canada, United Kingdom, Germany, and France. (two mistakes)

16. Are we going to have to work overtime again this week? I hope no.

17. Yesterday, he told me that he will send the email after lunch, but he didn’t do it.

18. My schedule often changes, but I normally work since 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.
19. I thought you were still with Microsoft. When did you stop to work there?

20. I’m not pretty sure about what we should do.

21. How long time did you work in the public sector?

22. Do you know where is the restaurant?

23. He is well-experienced, so we know that he can do the job.

24. Who is in charge to decide which printer to buy?

25. I had a hard time getting in touch with my supervisor. After calling for hours, I finally
could get in touch with her.

Answers and Explanations

1. We are only five There are five of us on our team.

We say there are five of us, there are seven of them, there are three of you, etc. We
don’t normally say We are five, they are seven, etc.

Examples:
There are five of us working on this project.
We are five working on this project.
There are six of you in your department, correct?
You are six in your department, correct?

2. I would rather to work from home than come to the office.

After rather, we use the base form of the verb (I’d rather go/work/eat/see, etc.).
3. We’re used to have having a lot of work to do, so meeting the deadline won’t be a
problem.

To talk about something that someone is accustomed to doing, we use the following
formula:

Subject + verb to be + used to + gerund

Examples:
I’m used to getting up early, so I don’t mind coming in at 7 a.m.
I’m used to get up early, so I don’t mind coming in at 7 a.m.
She’s not used to speaking English on the phone, so it sometimes makes her nervous.
She’s not used to speak English on the phone, so it sometimes makes her nervous.

Note that we often use this grammatical structure to talk about why something is (or
isn’t) a problem.

4. My client sent me an email but I haven’t replied her yet.

We use reply without an object or followed by “to” + what/who we are replying to.

Examples:
I received an invitation from John, but I haven’t replied yet.
I received an invitation from John, but I haven’t replied him yet.
I haven’t replied to his email yet.
I haven’t replied his email yet.

Note that the same rule applies to the verb respond.

5. Maybe I’m going to I might finish this today.

We don’t use Maybe + subject + I’m going to to communicate a future possibility.

Instead, we use might and the base form of the verb.

Examples:
She might go to the meeting.
Maybe she’s going to go to the meeting.
They might not finish the project on time.
Maybe they’re not going to finish the project on time.

Note that we can also use Maybe +subject + will + base form to communicate a future
possibility that the speaker is thinking about at the moment of speaking. Maybe I’ll
watch the game tonight, for example.

6. Please borrow lend me your badge so I can get into the storage closet.

The person who owns the item lends it, and the person who uses the item for a short
period of time borrows it.

7. I can’t finish this by the end of the day. Even though Even if I spend all day on it, I
won’t finish on time.

We use even though or although for something that is true. We use even if to talk about
a hypothetical condition.

Examples:
We’re going to the beach tomorrow even if it rains. (hypothetical condition)
We’re going to the beach tomorrow even though it rains.
Even though it rained, we had a great time at the beach. (something that is true)
Even if it rained, we had a great time at the beach.

8. Probably, I’ll probably go to the beach on Saturday.

Probably typically goes before the main verb or after the verb to be.
Note that the negative would be I probably won’t go to the beach on Saturday.

9. The Old Man and the Sea was written for by Ernest Hemingway.

In the passive voice, we use by to talk about who created something (a painting, a book,
a story, etc.).
10. Our office is near to the airport, so it will be easy for you to get here.

We say close to or near, but not near to.

11. We have many stuffs a lot of stuff to do this week, so I don’t know if I can go to
English class.

Stuff has no plural form. It is a non-count noun.

12. Despite Even though/Although I was tired, I came to work today.

We use despite/in spite of before a noun or gerund. We use even

though/although before a subject and a verb.

Examples:
Despite being sick, I came to work.
In spite of being sick, I came to work.
Despite I was sick, I came to work.
In spite of I was sick, I came to work.
Although I was sick, I came to work.
Even though I was sick, I came to work.
Although being sick, I came to work.
Even though my sickness, I came to work.

13. If we had a gym here, I can could work out after work.

This is an unreal conditional (also called the second conditional). We use the unreal
conditional to talk about hypothetical or unreal situations in the present or future. For
more information, see this guide to conditionals.
14. I always try to do things very careful carefully and make sure I do
them correct correctly. (two mistakes)

In this sentence, we need to use adverbs instead of adjectives because we are

modifying a verb.

15. We have people from all over the world here: India, the United States, Venezuela,
Canada, the United Kingdom, Germany, and France. (two mistakes)

We use the in the names of certain countries:

the United States

the United Kingdom
the Czech Republic
the Dominican Republic
the Netherlands
the Philippines
the Bahamas
the Maldives
the United Arab Emirates
the Sudan

General rules for when we use the in the name of a country:

a. if the country or area is a collection of islands (the Maldives, the Canary Islands).
b. If we are using the complete name of the country with the word “of.” The People’s
Republic of China, for example.

16. Are we going to have to work overtime again this week? I hope no not.

The expression is I hope not, not I hope no.

17. Yesterday, he told me that he will would send the email after lunch, but he didn’t do
it.

In reported speech, will becomes would or was/were going to.

Examples:
On my first day, they told me that we would have orientation at the end of my first week.
On my first day, they told me that we were going to have orientation at the end of my
first week.
On my first day, they told me that we will have orientation at the end of my first week.
On my first day, they told me that we are going to have orientation at the end of my first
week.

18. My schedule often changes, but I normally work since from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.

For schedules, we use from….to….

19. I thought you were still with Microsoft. When did you stop to work working there?

We use stop + gerund to communicate that an action has finished.

Examples:
I stopped working at 6 p.m. last night.
I stopped to work at 6 p.m. last night.

We use stop + infinitive to communicate that we stopped one action in order to start
another action.

Examples:
I was working this morning, but I stopped to run some errands.
I was working this morning, but I stopped running some errands.

20. I’m not pretty sure about what we should do.

We don’t use pretty sure in the negative. We can say I’m pretty sure, but I’m not pretty
sure is incorrect.

21. How long time did you work in the public sector?
We say How long… for questions about duration of time, not How long time…

22. Do you know where is the restaurant the restaurant is?

After expressions like Do you know…, Could you tell me,.. and I was wondering if… we
use statement order, not question order. These are called indirect questions.

Examples:
Could you tell me what time it is?
Could you tell me what time is it?
Do you know who she is?
Do you know who is she?

23. He is well-experienced He has a lot of experience, so we know that he can do the

job.

We can’t use well before all adjectives. Sometimes it works (well-paid, well-educated),
but sometimes it does not (well-knowledgeable, well-interpreted).

24. Who is in charge to decide of deciding which printer to buy?

We say in charge of + gerund.

25. I had a hard time getting in touch with my supervisor. After calling for hours, I
finally could was able get in touch with her.

We use was/were able to to talk about one successful event in the past. We
use could or was/were able to to talk about what was generally possible in the past.

Examples:
We were able to outbid out competitors. (we outbid them and won the contract)
We could outbid our competitors. (incorrect if we are talking about one successful event
in the past)
When I was younger I could work out every day. (generally possible in the past
= was/were able to or could)
When I was younger, I was able to work out every day. (generally possible in the past
= was/were able to or could)

Note that in the negative form we can use both forms.

Examples:
We weren’t able to outbid our competitors.
We couldn’t outbid our competitors.

For more error correction exercises, see:

Exercise 1 (beginner)
Exercises 2B (intermediate)
Exercise 2C (intermediate)
Exercise 3A (advanced)
Common Mistakes in Emails
Common Mistakes in Emails 2
Error Correction for Spanish Speakers

Common English Mistakes – Error Correction Exercise 2C (intermediate)

Below are 25 common English mistakes that intermediate students make. Correct the errors in each
sentence and then see the answers and explanations below.

For more error correction exercises, see:

Exercise 1 (beginner)

Exercise 2A (intermediate)

Exercise 2B (intermediate)

Exercise 3A (advanced)

Common Mistakes in Emails

Common Mistakes in Emails 2

Error Correction for Spanish Speakers

Correct the Mistakes

1. He’s the one which has the blue tie on.

2. We like very much the new secretary.

3. Could you tell me how can I get in touch with Mr. Yamamoto?

4. We’re not sure he is enough experienced for the position.

5. She’s very sick and has been at the hospital for two weeks.

6. We talked during three hours this morning.

7. We’re using all the informations we have to make an informed decision.

8. They change often our seats at work.

9. They don’t let us to send our clients gifts without getting approval from management first.

10. Do we have some coffee or tea to offer our guests?

11. I called Kate this morning and she told me she’ll call me back in a half an hour.

12. We regularly conduct emergency drills for ensuring that we are prepared for an emergency.
13. Brad is 32 now. He completes 33 years in October.

14. These are the most cheap gas prices I have seen in my life.

15. Yesterday, I must sent a very important email to a client.

16. We knew there was a gas leak because it smelled really badly inside the house.

17. My parents always told me that it’s important being positive.

18. For the economy, we haven’t been able to hire any new people.

19. He says that he’s been really tired since several weeks ago.

20. A friend of us is going to pick us up at the airport.

21. I’ve worked like a waiter in the past, but I wouldn’t want to do it again.

22. To sleep at work is acceptable in some cultures.

23. Because these problems, we shouldn’t move forward with this proposal right now.

24. I’m going to take my lunch break and then to make some phone calls.

25. I’ve asked everyone to help me with my college admissions essay. Even I asked someone I met on
the bus.
Answers and Explanations

1. He’s the one which who/that has the blue tie on.

We use the relative pronoun which to refer to things. To refer to people, we use who or that. In formal
writing, who is a better choice.

Examples:

He was the one who/that recommended this solution.

He was the one which recommended this solution.

2. We like very much the new secretary very much.

We don’t normally place an adverb between a verb and its object.

Examples:

I like sports a lot.

I like a lot sports.

The doctor patiently described the surgical procedure.

The doctor described patiently the surgical procedure.

3. Could you tell me how can I I can get in touch with Mr. Yamamoto?
After expressions like Do you know…, Could you tell me,.. and I was wondering if… we do not invert the
subject and the verb. These are called indirect questions.

Examples:

I was wondering if you could help me with something.

I was wondering if could you help me with something.

Could you tell me how I should do this?

Could you tell me how should I do this?

4. We’re not sure he is enough experienced experienced enough for the position.

Enough goes after an adjective or before a noun.

Examples:

Do we have enough food?

Do we have food enough?

Is the conference room big enough for 10 people?

Is the conference room enough big for 10 people?

5. She’s very sick and has been at in the hospital for two weeks.

To communicate that someone is a patient at the hospital, we say in the hospital. If someone is not a
patient, we use at the hospital.

Examples:
The surgery went well. She was only in the hospital for two days.

The surgery went well. She was only at the hospital for two days.

I think Stephanie’s at the hospital visiting her great aunt.

I think Stephanie’s in the hospital visiting her great aunt.

6. We talked during for three hours this morning.

We use for to communicate a duration a time. We use during to communicate over what period of time
something happened.

Examples:

I slept for three hours, and I woke up just in time for dinner.

I slept during three hours, and I woke up just in time for dinner.

No one interrupted during his presentation.

No one interrupted for his presentation.

7. We’re using all the informations we have to make an informed decision.

Information is a non-count noun. There is no plural form of information. Other non-count nouns
students frequently misuse include evidence, advice, stuff, and furniture. There is no plural form of
these words.

8. They often change often our seats at work.

We put adverbs of frequency (always, usually, never, etc.) before the main verb or after the verb to be.

Examples:

Mike never talks about his ex-wife.

Mike talks never about his ex-wife

Mike talks about his ex-wife never.

9. They don’t let us to send our clients gifts without getting approval from management first.

After let, help, make, and have (when have communicates that someone is being told to do something),
we use the base infinitive of the second verb, not the infinitive form.

Examples:

He had his secretary reserve a table for two.

He had his secretary to reserve a table for two.

They made us feel welcome.

They made us to feel welcome.

My niece helped me set up my computer.

My niece helped me to set up my computer.

10. Do we have some any coffee or tea to offer our guests?

In general, we use some with affirmative statements and any with questions and negative statements.

Examples:
We’ve had some difficulty getting approval.

We’ve had any difficulty getting approval.

Have you had any difficulty getting approval?

Have you had some difficulty getting approval?

We didn’t have any difficulty getting approval.

We didn’t have some difficulty getting approval.

For practice and a complete explanation, see this some vs. any practice exercise.

11. I called Kate this morning and she told me she’ll she would (or she’d) call me back in a half an hour.

When reporting what someone said, will becomes would and won’t becomes wouldn’t. We can leave it
as will if it’s something that is still going to take place in the future.

Examples:

Before the election, both candidates promised they wouldn’t raise taxes.

Before the election, both candidates promised they won’t raise taxes.

The meeting went well. Mike said he would consider our proposal.

The meeting went well. Mike said he will consider our proposal.

Note that They said they will consider our proposal would be correct if the meeting ended very recently
and Mike still hasn’t considered the proposal.

12. We regularly conduct emergency drills for ensuring to ensure that we are prepared for an
emergency.
To describe the purpose of something, we can use the gerund. To describe the purpose of someone, we
use the infinitive. This page does an excellent job describing the difference.

13. Brad is 32 now. He completes turns 33 years in October.

To communicate the someone is becoming a year older, we use turn, not complete. Also, we do not say
years after the number unless we say years old.

Examples:

I can’t believe my youngest sister is turning 20 this year.

I can’t believe my youngest sister is completing 20 this year.

Let’s have a big party when you turn 40.

Let’s have a big party when you turn 40 years.

See these collocations exercises to practice using correct word partners.

14. These are the most cheap cheapest gas prices I have seen in my life.

To form the superlative form of most one-syllable adjectives, we add “est” to the end of the word.

Examples:

Are you sure this is the newest release?

Are you sure this is the most new release?

Kevin is the oldest person here.

Kevin is the most old person here.

15. Yesterday, I must sent had to send a very important email to a client.

We don’t use must to communicate a past obligation or necessity. Instead, we use had or needed.

Examples:

To travel to Indonesia, I had to get a visa.

To travel to Indonesia, I must got a visa.

Marilyn will be right back. She needed to take an important call.

Marilyn will be right back. She must took an important call.

16. We knew there was a gas leak because it smelled really badly bad inside the house.

We use bad, not badly to modify states of being (look, smell, taste, feel, etc.). Similarly, we use good, not
well to modify states of being.

Examples:

This coffee tastes bad.

This coffee tastes badly.

Do you think the decorations look good?

Do you think the decorations look well?

17. My parents always told me that it’s important being to be positive.

The correct form is It’s + adjective + infinitive. We can add for + object before the infinitive.

Examples:

It’s impossible for us to complete this on time.

It’s impossible for us completing this one time.

18. For Because of/Due to the economy, we haven’t been able to hire any new people.

To introduce a reason, we typically use because of or due to, not for. Both because of and due to must
be followed by a noun or a gerund.

Examples:

Because of its negative side effects, the medication was banned.

For its negative side effects, the medication was banned.

I was late because of the traffic.

I was late for the traffic.

19. He says that he’s been really tired since several weeks ago for the last several weeks.

We use since with a point in time (9 AM, Tuesday, 1994, etc.). We use for to talk about a duration of
time (three days, 12 seconds, two months, five years, etc.).

Examples:

They’ve been in the lobby for two hours.

They’ve been in the lobby since two hours.

They’ve been in the lobby since 10 AM.

They’ve been in the lobby for 10 AM.

20. A friend of us ours is going to pick us up at the airport.

We use the possessive pronouns mine, yours, his, hers, theirs, and ours in these type of statements. If
we are using someone’s name, we use the possessive (Brad’s, Kate’s Leonard’s, etc.).

Examples:

I saw a friend of yours last night at the party.

I saw a friend of your last night at the party.

Didn’t you say that a friend of Mike’s works at the post office?

Didn’t you say that a friend of Mike works for at post office?

21. I’ve worked like as a waiter in the past, but I wouldn’t want to do it again.

We say someone works as + occupation to communicate what someone’s job is.

Examples:

He used to be a full-time employee, but now he’s working as a consultant.

He used to be a full-time employee, but now he’s working like a consultant.

22. To sleep Sleeping at work is acceptable in some cultures.

When the name of an activity is the subject or object, we normally use the gerund.

Examples:

Fishing is a good way to relax.

To fish is a good way to relax.

My job involves writing technical documents.

My job involves to write technical documents.

23. Because of these problems (or Due to these problems), we shouldn’t move forward with this
proposal right now.

Because of and due to are followed by a noun or gerund. Because is followed by a subject and a verb.

Examples:

I was late because of the traffic.

I was late because the traffic.

I was late because there was a lot of traffic.

I was late because of there was a lot of traffic.

24. I’m going to take my lunch break and then to make some phone calls.

If we use two different verbs after going to, we do not use the infinitive form of the second verb.
Instead, we use the base infinitive (infinitive without to).
Examples:

Management is going to look at the bids and decide on a vendor.

Management is going to look at the bids and to decide on a vendor.

Monica told me she was going to stop at the bank and deposit the money.

Monica told me she was going to stop at the bank and to deposit the money.

25. I’ve asked everyone to help me with my college admissions essay. Even I I even asked someone I met
on the bus.

We can use even to emphasize something surprising or extreme. The correct form is subject + even +
verb.

Examples:

I’ve looked everywhere for my keys. I’ve even looked in the refrigerator!

I’ve looked everywhere for my keys. Even I’ve looked in the refrigerator!

They said they’re doing everything they can to save money. They even sold their car.

They said they’re doing everything they can to save money. Even they sold their car.