Ch 1
Error Analysis
Tense slip · agreement · confusable words · register
At C2 you recognise and correct the persistent errors that linger even in advanced learners — patterns that exam graders mark down heavily.
Tense slip
unintended shift between past and present in narrative
Modal misuse
"should of" / "must to" / "could have went"
Article overuse / underuse
"the life is hard" / "I study economics at the university"
Missing inversion
"Never I have seen" instead of "Never have I seen"
Narrative tense slip
She walked in and sits down. → She walked in and sat down.
Past perfect missing
When she arrived, the party ended. → When she arrived, the party had ended.
Backshift confusion
She said she will come. → She said she would come.
Present perfect vs past
I have seen him yesterday. → I saw him yesterday.
Continuous with stative
I am knowing the answer. → I know the answer.
Subject-verb (collective)
The team are winning. (UK ok) but The team is winning. (US/formal)
Proportional subjects
Most of the work are done. → Most of the work is done.
Pronoun ambiguity
When the policeman met the suspect, he was nervous. (who?) → rewrite for clarity
"None of" agreement
None of the candidates is suitable. (formal) / are (informal)
Each / every (singular)
Each student have a book. → Each student has a book.
affect / effect
affect = verb (influence) · effect = noun (result): The weather affected the match; the effect was dramatic.
imply / infer
the speaker implies (suggests) · the listener infers (concludes)
fewer / less
fewer + countable (fewer cars) · less + uncountable (less traffic)
lie / lay
lie (no object): I lay down · lay (+ object): She laid the table
comprise
The team comprises eleven players. (not "comprises of")
disinterested / uninterested
disinterested = impartial · uninterested = not interested
principle / principal
principle = a rule or belief · principal = main, or a head of school
Missing inversion
Never I have seen such beauty. → Never have I seen such beauty.
Dangling participle
Walking home, the rain started. → While I was walking home, the rain started.
Pronoun + repeated noun
The book that I read it was great. → The book that I read was great.
"would" in if-clause
If I would have known... → If I had known...
Register slip in formal writing
Don't use contractions in essays. → Avoid contractions in essays.
I have been knowing her since 2010.
→
I have known her since 2010.
stative verb → PP simple
If I would have known, I would have helped.
→
If I had known, I would have helped.
never "would" in if-clause
She suggested me to leave.
→
She suggested that I leave / suggested leaving.
suggest never + to-infinitive
In my opinion, I think this issue is very important.
→
This issue is of considerable importance.
redundancy + register
Spot and fix errors out loud.
1
Your teacher reads five sentences with errors — correct each one.
2
Explain the difference between imply and infer with an example.
3
Which errors do you make most often in English? Why?
4
Correct: "If I would have known, I would of helped."
Recap
Tense
narrative consistency · past perfect · backshift
"had + PP" for earlier past
Agreement
collective · proportional · each/every (singular)
most of the work is
Confusables
affect/effect · imply/infer · fewer/less · lie/lay
fewer cars, less traffic
Structure
inversion · dangling participle · no "would" in if
never have I / had I known