Most common mistakes

• Engels
• MBO
• Studiejaar 2

This week we'll be looking into...

...writing rules

...the most commonly made mistakes. 

Goal

You can recognize the most common writing mistakes and avoid them yourself in the future. 

1) Dear Sir or Madam,

If you do not know the name of the person you are writing to, use this. It is always advisable to try to find out a name.

2) Dear Mr Jenkins,

If you know the name, use the title (Mr, Mrs, Miss or Ms, Dr, etc.) and the surname only. If you are writing to a woman and do not know if she uses Mrs or Miss, you can use Ms, which is for married

1) Yours faithfully

If you do not know the name of the person, end the letter this way.

2) Yours sincerely

If you know the name of the person, end the letter this way.

3. With kind regards

Commonly used. 

First paragraph?

Second/Third paragraph

Last paragraph

Most common mistakes

Articles 

Simple Past Tense

Plural forms

Capitalization

Same sound, different spelling (Homophones)

A vs AN
Do you live in __ house?
No, actually, I live in __ apartment.

A or An?
_____ bed

1. A
2. An

A or An?
_____ online meeting

1. A
2. An

A or An?
_____ funny joke

1. A
2. An

A or An?
_____ expensive purse

1. A
2. An

A or An?
_____ answer

1. A
2. An

Past simple forms

We ______ the computer last night.

1. used
2. use
3. useed
4. uset

He ____ a shower.

1. haved
2. had
3. hat
4. het

Use the past simple tense:
They ______(do) their homework yesterday.

Use the past simple tense:
He already _______(eat) all the cake.

Use the past simple tense:
It _______(be) cold last night.

Use the past simple tense:
I _______(come) to England in 1993.

Use the past simple tense:
I________(buy) some books this morning.

Plural forms
1 have got one dog
he has got two _______

This box has to go to the kitchen and those _______ over there to the bathroom.

Write the plural form:
park

Write the plural form:
copy

Write the plural form:
sheep

Write the plural form:
friend

Which words in the following sentences need a capital letter?

on sunday, i will see the movie star wars and eat at taco bell.

Which words in the following sentences need a capital letter?

terry and louis went to central park last july.

Which words in the following sentences need a capital letter?

she has a friend from london, england.

Which words in the following sentences need a capital letter?

did you know that abraham lincoln was the sixteenth president?

Same sound

Different spelling

meat vs meet

right vs write

know / no

There vs their vs they're

your vs you're 

I _____an entire pizza and now I’m really full and tired.

1. eight
2. ate

We wanted to buy a chocolate cake ______ Cheryl’s birthday

1. for
2. four

Same sound, different spelling

right/write: There is no right way to write a great novel.

sea/see: At my beach house, I love to wake up and see the sea. 

son/sun: My son is 13 years old. He likes to spend time outside in the sun. 

steal/steel: Someone who decides to steal a car has committed a crime, but auto parts are made of steel. 

tail/tale: My cat was crazily chasing his tail while I read a fairy tale to my children. 

weather/whether: I don't know whether to bring a jacket or not. The weather looks unpredictable today.

Same sound, different spelling

for/four: I purchased four new pairs of shoes for my upcoming vacation.

heal/heel: If the heel breaks on your shoe, you might fall. However, your injuries will heal over time. 

hear/here: I wanted to sit here so I could hear the singer performing without any distractions. 

hour/our: We have one hour before our appointment with the real estate agent. 

poor/pour: I pour drinks at a bar every night. I am poor because I have too many bills and not enough money.

It takes about an _______ to drive from San Francisco to Los Angeles

1. Hour
2. Our

Reggie ________how to speak French.

1. knows
2. noos

I should turn ______ when I get to 10th Street, _______?

1. write
2. right