Common Grammar Errors

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Home Search  Glossary of Terms Common Errors FAQs Grammar Chat Download Grammar Checker List of common grammar errors and easily confused words A ^ top abbreviations an or a BBC or B.B.C. BC and AD contractions (Mr or Mr.) e.g. and i.e. plurals (PCs or PC's) accept and except AD and BC adjectives an or a auntie June or Auntie June compound adjectives (e.g. 4-seater aircraft) contractions (Mr or Mr.) expressions like 3-and-a-quarter million extremely-talented actor or extremely talented actor hers or her's, ours or our's hyphens in adjectives (e.g. 4-seater aircraft) its and it's Red Lion Lawn or Red Lion lawn well-known actor or well known actor adoptive and adopted adverbial clause adverbial phrase adverbs "At 4 o'clock, she..." or "At 4 o'clock she..." extremely-talented actor or extremely talented actor well-known actor or well known actor adverse and averse advice and advise affect or effect agenda (plural or singular) all or all of allot, a lot and allot allude and elude allusion and illusion allowed and aloud already or all ready alright or all right altar and alter altogether and all together amoral and immoral amount, quantity and number an or a an or a (with abbreviations) and in a list (with a comma or not) "and I" or "and me" and joining two sentences (with a comma or not) and (starting a sentence) appraise and apprise apostrophes could of, would of, should of her's, our's, their's, your's its and it's possession plurals temporal expressions (e.g. 3 years' insurance) you're and your auntie June or Auntie June autumn or Autumn B ^ top bare and bear BC being or been beside and besides "between you and I" brackets for parentheses breathe and breath but in a list (with a comma or not) but joining two sentences (with a comma or not) but (starting a sentence)   C ^ top can and may can not canvas and canvass capital letters Auntie June or auntie June company or Company however or However capital letter for important words common nouns moons, stars and planets points of the compass proper nouns (names) Red Lion Lawn or Red Lion lawn seasons title case censor, censure and sensor cite, sight and site climactic and climatic collective noun (singular or plural) coarse and course colons before a quotation used to extend a sentence commas after an introductory phrase (e.g. On 4 Jul 1984,) after an interjection (e.g. Yes,) after long subject of a sentence after transitional phrases (e.g. As a result,) before and (in a list) before and (joining two sentences) before quotation marks for parentheses starting a new sentence after a comma with adjectives with vocative case (e.g. John,) which (comma before or not) comparatives and superlatives most prettiest (errors with adjectives) most fastest (errors with adverbs) complement and compliment compound adjectives extremely-talented actor or extremely talented actor hyphen in a compound adjective (e.g. two-seater aircraft) use of capital letters, italics and quotation marks well-known actor or well known actor 3-and-a-half million or 3 and a half million compound nouns forming plurals possessive forms of compound nouns (e.g. sister-in-law's) with hyphens (e.g. cooking-oil) compose and comprise ('comprise of' and 'is comprised of') conjunctions in a list (with or without a comma) joining two sentences (with or without a comma) joining two sentences (using a semicolon) starting a sentence contractions (Mr or Mr.) council and counsel could of criteria (plural or singular)   D ^ top dangling modifiers dash used to extend a sentence dashes for parentheses data (plural or singular) decent, descent and dissent definite and definitive defuse and diffuse dependant and dependent desert and dessert discreet and discrete disinterested and uninterested double negative with neither/nor   E ^ top east or East economic and economical effect or affect e.g and i.e. elicit and illicit either and neither double negative with neither/nor plural singular ellipsis (three or four dots) elude and allude enquiry and inquiry envelop and envelope etc or ect except and accept   F ^ top fewer or less forth and fourth forty not fourty   G ^ top getaway and get away grisly and grizzly H ^ top he/she and his/her (accepted convention) her's historic and historical however or However hyphens after prefixes (e.g. ex-President) compound adjectives (e.g. two-seater aircraft) compound nouns (e.g. cooking-oil) extremely-talented actor or extremely talented actor well-known actor or well known actor   I ^ top i.e. and e.g. if or whether illicit and elicit illusion and allusion immoral and amoral imply and infer incidence and incidents incite and insight inquiry and enquiry instance and instants interjections in official writing punctuation into, onto and up to its and it's   J ^ top K ^ top L ^ top lay and lie lead and led less or fewer licence or license lists including semicolons loath and loathe loose and lose M ^ top may and can more lovelier most fastest "my husband/wife and I" or "...and me"   N ^ top no-one or no one none is or none are north or North notable and noticeable number, amount and quantity numbers expressions like 3-and-a-quarter million forty starting sentences with figures writing numbers in full   O ^ top onto, into and up to or in a list (with a comma or not) or joining two sentences (with a comma or not) our's    P ^ top parenthesis commas for parenthesis end a parenthesis parentheses (brackets, commas or dashes) past or passed plain and plane plurals agenda, data, criteria (plural or singular) forming plurals forming plurals of compound nouns lion's instead of lions none (plural or singular) plural of abbreviations (PCs or PC's) spoonsful or spoonfuls pore, pour and poor possession cat's dinner or cats' dinner  possessive forms of compound nouns (e.g. sister-in-law's) Evans' report or Evans's report John and Bill's report or John's and Bill's report men's room or mens' room practice or practise prepositions ending a sentence following a preposition (who or whom) with verbs (preposition required or not) prepositional phrases (e.g. box of tapes) singular or plural principal and principle precede and proceed precedence and precedent prophecy and prophesy proscribe and prescribe provided or providing   Q ^ top quantity, amount and number question mark inside or outside of quotation quotation marks colon before a quotation comma before a quotation punctuation before the quotation or not punctuation inside or outside the quotation singular quotation marks within doubles tautology (e.g. so-called "clean" hands)   R ^ top raise, rise and raze role and roll S ^ top semicolon before transitional phrases (e.g. ...in the end; as a result,) before and (joining two sentences) for introduction (misuse) mistakenly using a colon in place of a semicolon separating list items too many semicolons used to extend a sentence sensor, censor and censure sentences capital letters (including quotations) ending a sentence in a preposition extending a sentence with a colon extending a sentence with a dash extending a sentence with a semicolon extending a sentence with three dots starting a new sentence after a comma starting a sentence with which or who starting sentences with figures should of sight, site and cite so (comma after) south or South speech marks colon before a quotation comma before a quotation punctuation before the quotation or not punctuation inside or outside the quotation singular speech marks within doubles tautology (e.g. so-called "clean" hands) split infinitive (e.g. to really try) spoonsful or spoonfuls spring or Spring stationary and stationery storey and story subject (long) grouped with a comma summer or Summer superlatives and comparatives most fastest (errors with adverbs) most prettiest (errors with adjectives)   T ^ top temporal expressions (e.g. 3 years' insurance) that, which and who (overview) that, which and who (comma before or not) their's these kind of then and than they're, their or there three dots used to extend a sentence too or to   U ^ top up to, into and onto uninterested and disinterested uncle Joe or Uncle Joe   V ^ top vain, vein and vane verbs dangling modifiers preposition required or not re-word to avoid a dangling modifier vocative case (e.g. John,)   W ^ top waist and waste weather, whether and wether well-known actor or well known actor west or West whether or if which, who and that (overview) which, who and that (comma before or not) who or whom following a preposition (who or whom) who (comma before or not) who's and whose winter or Winter would of   X ^ top Y ^ top you and I or you and me you're and your your's   Z ^ top Level  1 free Use Grammar Monster online 2 $7.95 Download Grammar Monster application 3 from $90 Buy an advanced grammar checker (up to 50% OFF)

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