IS IT CORRECT? - 6 - I have 35 years old.

All language learners around the world make mistakes. Have you ever felt your teacher’s corrections do not have a long-lasting effect? Are you frustrated that even though your teacher corrects you, once you leave the class you keep making the same mistakes? We understand how you feel and will help you eliminate mistakes you might be making. The purpose of this section is to address common mistakes many students from different countries make in English and briefly explain why they are incorrect. Once you understand why they are incorrect, it might be easier for you to avoid them!

IS IT CORRECT?

EPISODE 6

MISTAKE:  I have 35 years old.
CORRECTION:  I am 35 years old.

This is a common mistake if students use the verb “have” in their native language to talk about age. To them it seems perfectly logical to say: “I have 35 years old” or “My son has 2 years old.”

The correct ones, however, are:

“I am 35 years old” and “My son is 2 years old.”

In English “have” cannot be used to talk about one’s age. If you keep making this mistake, this is something you need to practice often before you simply get used to it (try repeating out loud correct sentences like above a few times a day every day until you no longer need it).

If you feel you often translate phrases or sentences from your first language in order to say something in your second language, don’t worry. This is a stage that every student goes through and it will gradually go away if you practice. So go practice!

Good luck!
Ania Necakov - Academic Coordinator NYLC Jackson Heights

ania@nylanguagecenter.com

IS IT CORRECT ? - 5 - too much / very much

All language learners around the world make mistakes. Have you ever felt your teacher’s corrections do not have a long-lasting effect? Are you frustrated that even though your teacher corrects you, once you leave the class you keep making the same mistakes? We understand how you feel and will help you eliminate mistakes you might be making. The purpose of this section is to address common mistakes many students from different countries make in English and briefly explain why they are incorrect. Once you understand why they are incorrect, it might be easier for you to avoid them!

IS IT CORRECT?

EPISODE 5

MISTAKE:  I like it too much.
CORRECTION:  I like it very much. / I like it a lot.

This sentence is not always a mistake. It all depends on what you mean by saying it.

This is not a mistake if you want to say that you like something very much, but you would prefer not to like it. Or, you feel guilty you like something more than you should.

For example, you know you should quit smoking because it’s bad for you, but you just enjoy smoking a lot and cannot quit it – you would then say: 

“I want to quit smoking, but I like it too much.”

Another situation:  your mom wants to donate toys you no longer play with. You say: 

“It’s a great idea, but can I please keep my favorite teddy bear? I like it too much to give it away.”

But it is a mistake if you say:

I went to a wedding last Saturday. It was so wonderful and I liked it too much!

I will be confused because you are telling me the wedding was so great, but then you say you liked it too much. This means you feel guilty that you liked it or you think you liked it more that you should have. If there is no reason to feel guilty about it, you should just say:

I went to a wedding last Saturday. It was so wonderful and I liked it very/so much!

Take a look at another example:

The Rolling Stones concert I went to was awesome. The music was great and there were so many people.

It means you like everything about the concert: the music and the fact that there were a lot of people.

The Rolling Stones concert I went to was awesome. The music was great and there were too many people.

It means you liked the music, but you didn’t like the fact that there were a lot of people. In this situation it is better to say:

The Rolling Stones concert I went to was awesome. The music was great, but there were too many people.

So remember, use:

too + adjective (e.g. too long)       or        too + quantifier (e.g. too much)

when you want to express your negative opinion or you feel guilty about something.

IS IT CORRECT? - 4 - everyday / every day

IS IT CORRECT?

EPISODE 4

 MISTAKE:
I speak English everyday.

CORRECTION:
I speak English every day.

You can "only" make this mistake in writing. In speaking, of course, you will not hear the difference. However, I decided to give it attention because it is a very common mistake that students and native users of English make.

When you want to use it as a time phrase (to indicate how often you do something), it has to be written as two words. It is best to put it at the end of a sentence (or a clause), but starting a sentence with it is fine, too.

Examples:

I  eat breakfast every day. (at the end of a sentence)

I try to exercise every day, but sometimes I’m too busy. (at the end of a clause)

Every day he wakes up at 7 a.m. (at the beginning of a sentence)

“Everyday” written together is an adjective and means “average”, “ordinary”, “typical”, “usual”. As an adjective it modifies a noun so in a sentence it needs to be put before the noun it modifies. 

Examples:

These are not my everyday shoes. I only wear them on special occasions.

Politicians often use words that are difficult to understand to everyday people.

Rain is almost an everyday occurrence in Seattle.

You can e-mail me at: ania@nylanguagecenter.com if you have any questions or suggestions.
Ania Necakov - Academic Coordinator NYLC Jackson Heights

IS IT CORRECT? - 3 - in / to

All language learners around the world make mistakes. Have you ever felt your teacher’s corrections do not have a long-lasting effect? Are you frustrated that even though your teacher corrects you, once you leave the class you keep making the same mistakes? We understand how you feel and will help you eliminate mistakes you might be making. The purpose of this section is to address common mistakes many students from different countries make in English and briefly explain why they are incorrect. Once you understand why they are incorrect, it might be easier for you to avoid them!

IS IT CORRECT?

EPISODE 3

 MISTAKE:
I came in New York 2 months ago.

CORRECTION:
I came to New York 2 months ago.

Both “come in” and “come to” can mean “arrive” or “enter”, which is why the mistake above is so common. However, “come in” is used when someone is entering a room or a building, rather than a city or a country. It also refers more to the aspect of entering the place rather than visiting.

That’s why it’s OK to say:

“Please, come in.”

You hear someone knock on the door and you are encouraging this person to go through the door and enter the office or apartment.

But it is not OK to say:

“I’m throwing a party thi weekend. Can you come in?”

In this sentence you want someone to visit you, not simply go through the door. You should say:

“I’m throwing a party this weekend. Can you come?”

or

“I’m throwing a party this weekend. Can you come to my place?” (here: place = apartment/house)

If you have other questions, e-mail me at: ania@nylanguagecenter.com
Ania Necakov - Academic Coordinator NYLC Jackson Heights

IS IT CORRECT? - 2 - near to / next to

IS IT CORRECT?

EPISODE 2

 MISTAKE:

“The subway station is near to my house.”

CORRECTION:

The subway station is near my house.

                           or

The subway station is next to my house.

The difference between “near” and “next to” is small, but technically they are not exactly the same.

“Near” means “close to” or “not far from”. In this case it would mean that the subway station is close to my house, let’s say one block away.

“Next to” means that two people/things/places are very close to each other with nothing in between them. It would mean that when I leave my house the subways station is right there, I don’t have to walk any farther.

If you have additional questions, e-mail me at: ania.necakov@gmail.com

Ania Necakov - Academic Coordinator NYLC Jackson Heights

IS IT CORRECT? - 1 - go to shopping / go shopping

All language learners around the world make mistakes. Have you ever felt your teacher’s corrections do not have a long-lasting effect? Are you frustrated that even though your teacher corrects you, once you leave the class you keep making the same mistakes? We understand how you feel and will help you eliminate mistakes you might be making. The purpose of this section is to address common mistakes many students from different countries make in English and briefly explain why they are incorrect. Once you understand why they are incorrect, it might be easier for you to avoid them!

 

IS IT CORRECT?

EPISODE 1

MISTAKE:

“I’m going to shopping”

SITUATION  1 – you are talking about an activity that is happening right now and you want to use Present Continuous tense (also called Present Progressive). All you need to remember is that when you say you are going to, you are talking about going to a place or destination. Clearly, shopping is not a place, but an activity, so we cannot go to shopping just as we cannot go to eating or go to exercising.

SOLUTION:

Substitute an activity with a place and say:

I  am  going  to  shopping    the  supermarket.

I  am  going  to   eating   a  restaurant.

I  am  going  to   exercising   the  gym.

SITUATION  2 – you are talking about your prearranged plans for the future and you want to use going to to talk about the future, not the present. In this case you cannot use the gerund (verb+ing) after going to. You have to use the base form of the verb to form an infinitive (to + verb).

SOLUTION: 

Say:

I’m  going  to   shopping   do shopping.

I’m  going  to   eating   eat.

I’m  going  to   exercising   exercise.

Hope that helps!

Ania Necakov - Academic Coordinator NYLC Jackson Heights