How to Avoid 6 Common Grammar Mistakes

Even people who do know all the grammar rules don't necessarily obey them all the time, and that's fine. But when it matters -- job interviews, cover letters, business correspondence -- it really matters.

Here are six common mistakes and tips for avoiding them.

Difficulty: Moderately Challenging

Instructions

1. "I" vs. "me"
   
   "Me" is not a dirty word.
   
   Wrong: "Mom is forever giving coupons to Matt and I."
   Right: "Mom is forever giving coupons to Matt and me."
   
   Wrong: "Me and Matt saw 'Sense and Sensibility' on our first date."
   Right: "Matt and I saw 'Sense and Sensibility' on our first date."
   
   Hint: Read the sentences without "Matt" and you can trust your ear as to whether "I" or "me" is right. ("Mom is forever giving coupons to me [or us]." "I [or We] saw 'Sense and Sensibility' on our first date.")

2. "Who" vs. "whom"
   
   Never use "whom" incorrectly just because you think it sounds more educated.
   
   Wrong: "Matt, whom is a Duke fan, wants to see a Carolina/Duke rematch."
   Right: "Matt, who is a Duke fan, wants to see a Carolina/Duke rematch."
   
   Wrong: "Matt, who I am married to, was one hot soccer player in high school."
   Right: "Matt, to whom I am married, was one hot soccer player in high school."
   
   Hint: Loosely rephrase the sentence using he/him, she/her, we/us, they/them: "He is a Duke fan." "I am married to him." If you would replace "Matt" with he/she/we/they (as in the first example), you should use "who" in that sentence. If you would replace "Matt" with him/her/us/them (second example), use "whom."

3. "Less" vs. "fewer"
   
   Generally, use "fewer" for individual items and "less" for quantity.
   
   Wrong: "I wonder why there are always less people at Jersey Mike's than at Subway."
   Right: "I wonder why there are always fewer people at Jersey Mike's than at Subway."
   
   Wrong: "The amount of rain we've gotten this year is fewer than we got last year."
   Right: "The amount of rain we've gotten this year is less than we got last year."

4. Nonessential clauses
   
   Think of the commas in these examples as enclosing the nonessential part of the sentence.
   
   Wrong: "Matt, fantasy teams commissioner extraordinaire organized our March Madness pool."
   Right: "Matt, fantasy teams commissioner extraordinaire, organized our March Madness pool."
   
   Hint: In this sentence, you could remove "fantasy teams commissioner extraordinaire" without substantially changing the meaning of the sentence: "Matt organized our March Madness pool." Read this sentence out loud and it will be obvious that you need both commas, not just the first one.

5. "To" vs. "too"
   
   Yes, they sound the same, but they are two (ha!) different words. Don't use them interchangeably!
   
   Wrong: "Carolina won the ACC championship, and I think they're going too win the NCAA tournament to."
   Right: "Carolina won the ACC championship, and I think they're going to win the NCAA championship too."
   
   Wrong: "I drink to much Coke."
   Right: "I drink too much Coke."
   
   Hint: "Too" means "also" or "overly." "To" just means ... "to."

6. 
   This is an example of an unnecessary apostrophe.

   Extraneous apostrophes
   
   Sometimes it seems that people use apostrophes on a whim, without any logic. They aren't difficult to master.
   
   Wrong: "This home was custom-built for the McKenzie's."
   Right: "This home was custom-built for the McKenzies."
   
   Wrong: "I'm not the only person who dislike's the Thursday morning Body Pump teacher."
   Right: "I'm not the only person who dislikes the Thursday morning Body Pump teacher."
   
   Wrong: "One good thing about daylight saving time is that now my cars clock is correct."
   Right: "One good thing about daylight saving time is that now my car's clock is correct."
   
   Wrong: "I'll say it again: Carolinas going to win the NCAA championship this year."
   Right: "I'll say it again: Carolina's going to win the NCAA championship this year."
   
   Hint: Use an apostrophe to combine two words ("Carolina is" = "Carolina's") or to show possessiveness ("my car's clock"). Otherwise, you don't need an apostrophe.

Resources

• The Blog of Unnecessary Quotation Marks
• Literally, A Web Log
• Apostrophe Abuse
• Triangle Grammar Guide

[Thims]

on 9/23/2008 The more about grammer me learn the better! ;-) Great article everyone should read!

[Theone]

on 8/29/2008 It is really help me a lots, thank!
can you tell me more about grammar that related to past tense and past perfect.