Demonstrating What is Incorrect Usage

Demonstrating What is Correct Usage

1. Check for missing or incorrect articles:

“5% of population of Lebanon is…” 

2. Check the 3^rd person singular ‘s’ agreement in the present tense:

“… she wants to go to University…”

“…she want to go to University…”  

3. Check that your verbs are correct (in the active tense and the passive tense)

“They had already arrived…”

“They had already arrive…”  

4. Check that your verb forms are correct:

“They have been trying to…”

“…They have been tried to…”

5. Check all your subject-verb agreements:

“…poor countries have suffered…”

“… poor countries has suffered…”   

6. Check your countable and uncountable nouns:

“Most students do not wish to…”
 but “Most people in the world…”

“Most student do not wish to…”
but “Most peoples in the world…”  

7. Check that your pronouns refer to (previously mentioned) nouns:

“He wants to go to University…”
(correct if “a student” is previously mentioned)

“He wants to go to University…”  
(incorrect if “a student” is not mentioned before)

8. Check that your prepositions are correct:

“The company was interested in…”

“The company was interested at…” 

9. Check that your parts of speech are correct:

“…it was a destructive act…” (adj.)

“…it was a destruction act…” (noun) 

10. Check that your conditional forms are correct:

Zero:     If + present simple tense    …, + present simple tense + infinitive (Likelihood – always)

1^st:        If + present simple tense    …, + will (may/might/could etc.) + infinitive… (Likelihood - maybe)

2^nd:        If + past simple tense        …, + would (may/might/could etc.) + infinitive… (Likelihood - maybe not)

3^rd:        If + past perfect tense        …, + have + past participle… (Likelihood - did not occur)

Definitions of Tenses:

The Two Present Tenses:

Most English verbs have two “present” tenses. Forms like I wait, she thinks are called ‘simple present’ or ‘present simple’; forms like I am waiting or she’s thinking are called ‘present progressive’ or ‘present continuous’. Modal verbs like can or must do not have progressive forms, and some other verbs such as known or contain are rarely used in progressive forms. The two ‘present’ tenses are used to refer to several different kinds of time.

The Six Past Tenses:

In English, six different tenses are used to talk about the past:

    The simple past (I worked)

    The past progressive (I was working)

    The simple present perfect (I have worked)

    The present perfect progressive (I have been working)

    The simple past perfect (I had worked)

    The past perfect progressive (I had been working)

The difference between these tenses is quite complicated. Some English tenses express meanings (e.g. complication, continuation, present importance), which are not expressed by verb forms in all other languages, and this can make the use of tenses difficult for individuals to learn.

References:

Australia Centre Medan, “IELTS Preparation”, Jl. R.A. Kartini No. 32, Medan, Indonesia, North Sumatra, 20152, pge 139.
Swan, Michael (2002), “Practical English Usage” Oxford University Press, Great Claredon Street, Oxford, pge 443.

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