Common Mistakes

Index:

When must I use I?

Do I need a or the in this sentence?
Talking about age
How to say the time & date
Adding -ed to verbs
I did or I have done?
for & since
How do I form questions?
There & it/they
Plural & uncountable nouns
much & many
like, would like & want
do or to do?
other, others, another & each other
at & in & on places & time expressions
by & in/on with transport
from, about & of
Do I need for in this sentence?

When must I use I?

1.

In general we use subject pronouns (I, you, he, she, they) before verbs, because verb forms (play/s,
played, have/has played) refer to many different people (I play, you play, etc.)

My friend and I enjoyed the film. She liked the story and I liked the acting.
Always use I with am. I am very intelligent.
2.

You dont need to use the subject pronoun in the 2nd/3rd part of a sentence when the subject is the
same and the verb is in the same tense.

I got up late, (I) had a shower and (I) then went to work.
Use a pronoun after the verbs hope & think
I hope (that) you are okay. I think (that) Ill go to bed now.
4.
Use a pronoun after because, but & so
I got up late because I was tired, but I felt ill, so I went back to bed.
5.
Include the pronoun it at the beginning of sentences like these
Its nearly six oclock, so its time to go. It was nice to see you.
3.

Rewrite these sentences using I, it or we

1. maybe will meet our friends.
2. think will go into town and buy a shirt.
3. Are buying because costs very little.
4. my grandparents died and very sad.
5. can play tennis but dont play very well.
6. am tired today so will sleep well tonight.
7. put the book on the shelf and left the library.
8. hope will see you soon.
9. is dark so need my torch.

Do I need a or the in this sentence?

1.
2.

We use a with single countable nouns. I want to buy a camera.

We use an before singular countable nouns starting with the vowels a, e, i, o, u.
apple every day for breakfast.
(there are exceptions when word begins with the vowel u
An umbrella, an uncle, an umpire, but a unit, a uniform, a useful thing
3.
Use a & an before an adjective + noun
Bandung is a beautiful city. Its an interesting city.
4. Dont use a or an before an adjective if there isnt a noun
Bandung is a beautiful. Its an interesting.
Rewrite the end of these sentences
1. Keanu Reeves is famous. (actor) a famous actor
2. Spain is interesting. (country)

I eat an

3.
4.
5.
6.
7.

It was fantastic. (match)

Jakarta is expensive. (city)
My best friend is beautiful. (woman)
Thats great. (idea)
I live in house. (ugly

a or the
1.

2.

We use a
After there is There is a park and a swimming pool nearby.
To mention a person or thing for the first time. Ive got a friend staying with me.
To describe what we do. Im a lecturer, my wife is a doctor.
To describe ourselves. Im a Chelsea supporter.
We use the
To mention a person/thing for the second time
There is a park and a swimming pool nearby. I walk through the park daily, but I

dont often go to the swimming pool.

When it is clear which person/thing we are talking about.
I like my course of study. The lecturers are very good.
When there is only one person or thing. I eat in the kitchen
For places in a town. the cinema, the bank, the petrol station but not after there is

There is a cinema.
For services.
the doctor, the dentist, the hairdresser

Add a or the to these sentences

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.

I bought banana and .cake, but I didnt eat cake.

In my town, theres bank and cinema near ..station.
I need to get .book from library.
My uncles .doctor. He works in hospital in Canada.
Sydney is . big city, but it isnt capital of Australia.
My brothers .goalkeeper on his team. Hes ..good player.
I work in . Shop in .. city centre.
I switched off . light and closed .the door.

Do I need the in this sentence?

We use the

With the names of cafes, hotels, restaurants, cinemas, theatres & museums. Ill be
at the Jakarta Coffee House. I went to the Playhouse Theatre. I like the Jakarta
National Museum.

With some famous place names. the White House, the Eiffel Tower, the Vatican,

the Blue Mosque

With seas, oceans, rivers, islands, mountains
the Java Sea, the Pacific Ocean, the Ciliwung River, the Bahamas, the Himalayas
With north/south/east/west for location (but not direction)
Bandung is in the north-west of java. It is east of Jakarta and west of Cirebon.
Dont use the with street names, stations, churches, airports. Gambir Station is in
Jalan Sudrirman, near Istiqlal Mosque. It is a long way from there to Sukarno-Hatta
airport.

Add the to these sentences. Sometimes you need to add it twice.

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.

Haykal works in Hilton Hotel near Jalan Ottoiskander.

Sweden is in north of Europe, north of Denmark.
Have you been to Tower of London?
Natural History Museum is in west of Jakarta.
We went to Trafalgar Square and National Art Gallery.
Canary Island are in Atlantic Ocean.
London Eye is next to Thames River.

How do I talk about age?

We use the verb be to talk about age dont use have/have got.
How old are you? I am 22 years old (not..I have 22 years old)
My motorbike is 2 years old. (Notmy motorbike has got 2 years old)
When we talk about people and pets we can leave out years old
My dog is seven. My mother is 52.
With things we always use years old. Borobodur Temple is thousands of years old.
Use the singular form of year, month and day before a noun. Use hyphens before nouns.
Ive got a nine-year-old sister. He has a one-month-old baby.

How do I say the time & date?

We use it when we ask and say the time. We use oclock after a number when it is exactly
that hour.
What time is it? It is two oclock. It is half past three.
We dont use the 24 hour clock in spoken English. (This is for trains and planes)
We can use time expressions such as in the morning/afternoon/evening and at night to be
clear.
I will be there at eight oclock in the morning. They arrived at ten oclock at night.
Or
Use the abbreviations am and pm

I will be there at 8 am. They arrived at 10 pm.

We can say times between the hours in two different ways.
8.20
= Its eight twenty, or Its twenty past eight
8.30

= Its eight thirty or Its half past eight

8.45

= Its eight forty-five or Its quarter to nine

8.50

= Its eight fifty or Its ten to nine

* We can say dates in two ways (dont use of when beginning with the month)
Write - July 22, 2012

say July the twenty-second, two thousand and twelve

Write 3 April, 1995

say The third of April, nineteen ninety-five

When do I add -ed to verbs?

Which sentence is correct?
My parents called me last night, but I wasnt at home.
My parents call me last night, but I wasnt at home.
I lost my friends phone, so I gived him another.
I lost my friends phone, so I gave him another
We add-ed or d to the infinitive form of the verb to make regular past simple forms
I enjoyed the party last night. I really liked the music.
We have to make some changes to some verb endings:
consonant + -y = -ied

try = tried

double the final consonant

hurry = hurried

study = studied

plan = planned rob = robbed

stop = stopped

A lot of past simple verbs are irregular. Sometimes only one letter is different:
infinitive

come

past simple - came

drink

fall

get

give

know

lose

make

win

drank fell

got

gave

knew

lost

made

won

Some verbs have the same infinitive and past simple form: cost, cut, hurt, let, put, read
Other verbs have very different past simple forms
infinitive -

buy

do

past simple -

bought did

feel

go

have

meet

see

sleep

speak take

felt

went

had

met

saw

slept

spoke took

Correct the mistakes I these sentences where necessary.

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.

The walls in my new house were very bare, so I decorate them.

This pen cost five dollars.
My brother studied English when he was at school.
On Friday I met my friends and we go to a restaurant.
Last week I take my driving test.
I decided to stay at home this morning.
My brother come home at three oclock this morning.
My parents buyed a washing machine yesterday.

I did or I have done?

We use the past simple (did) when we say when something happened:
I watched TV until six oclock then I did my homework.
I bought this camera two years ago. It didnt cost me very much.
We visited a lot of museums when we were in New York.
We us the present perfect (have done), when we dont say when something happened.
Ive done my homework. I can watch TV now.
Ive bought a new camera.

Julia isnt here. She has gone out.

We use the present perfect to talk about our experiences:

Weve been to New York three times, but weve never been to Washington.
I havent seen the film, but Ive read the book.
We make the present perfect with have/has + past participle (done)

Note: a lot of past participles are irregular.

go has two past participles: use gone when someone hasnt come back; use been when the person has
come back.

Complete these sentences with the past simple or present perfect form of the verb.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.

I. (leave) school last year.

I .. (read) that book. I dont want to read it again.
I(get up) at half past seven this morning.
Whats the matter?
I (hurt) my leg.
My parents .(not travel) very much.
We .(not go) to the theatre when we were in London.
I like George Clooney. I .(see) all his films.
My sister .. (start) work in 2009.

for & since

Which sentence is correct?
The weather is nice since the weekend.

The weather has been nice since the weekend.

This is my house. I have lived here for four years.

This is my house. I lived here for four years.

We often use for with the present perfect to talk about a situation that continues to the present.
We use for to talk about length of time.
Dewi is in my class. Ive known her for three months.
My mum works in a hospital. Shes been a nurse for twenty years.
We also use since with the present perfect to say when the time period again. We do not use for
or since for the present simple.

My parents have a computer since 2004 = X

My parents have had a computer since 2004.

I dont see Agus since we were at SD. = X I havent seen Agus since we were at SD.
We use for & since with different time expressions. Here are some examples:

for: an hour

three days

since: eight oclock

five weeks

last Tuesday

six months

January

ten years

my birthday

Correct the mistakes I these sentences where necessary.

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

We were married since July.

Ive been a student since a long time.
Anna has knew her best friend since she was five.
I havent eaten for two days.
Luigi has travelled a lot for he Has left school.

How Do I Form Questions?

We change the position of the noun or pronoun with am/is/are (was/were)

The teacher is Indonesian. Is the teacher Indonesian?
Theyre going to watch a movie. Are they going to watch a movie?
They were late for the exam. Were they late for the exam?
We also change the position of the noun or pronoun with these verbs

will: It will be ready soon. Will it be ready soon?

Have got, done: Shes done her homework. Has she done her homework?
I have got a headache.

- Have you got a headache?

Can/could/must: They can swim very well. Can they swim very well?

a long time

I was ten

He must be home by midnight. Must he be home by midnight?

We could go out for dinner. Could we go out for dinner?
We use do/does + infinitive with the present simple.
The teachers work very long hours. Do the teachers work very long hours?
Our mother speaks French. Does our mother speak French?
We use did + infinitive with the past simple. Some verbs are irregular.
She went home at eight oclock. What time did she go home?
I did my homework in class. Where did you do your homework?

Write questions with you

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.

I was tired. ____________________________________

I watched TV last night.____________________________________
Ill be there. _____________________________________
I want a drink. ____________________________________
I could swim when I was three. _______________________________
Im selling this dictionary. ___________________________________
Ive washed my hands. __________________________________
I had lunch at home. ____________________________________

Write the questions.

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Paul has gone on holiday. Where __________________________________?

Shes bought some new clothes. What ______________________________?
We were late for school. Why ____________________________________?
I saw Mark in the city yesterday. When _____________________________?
Yeni walked a long way. How ______________________________________?

there & it/they

We use there to introduce new information. We always use a noun after there
In my room theres a table and a chair. (not: In my room is a table and a chair)
We use it for information that has already been mentioned. We can use an adjective or a noun
after it.
Theres a cupboard too. It is quite large.
We also use it to talk about times, dates, weather and distances.
What time is it? Its half past three.

Is it the twentieth today? No its the twenty-first.

The weather is awful. Its cold and it rains all the time.
How far is it to your house? Its two kilometres from here.
We use there and they for plurals
How many questions are there in the exam. About fifty I think. Are they difficult? Not really.
Complete the sentences with theres/there are or its/ they are

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.

_________________ nearly nine oclock.

If you like music, ____________________ a concert tonight.
I quite like apples, but only when ______________ sweet.
______________________ two boys from Australia in my class.
The sun is shining and ______________ very warm.
Ive got some new shoes, but _______________ not comfortable.
I come here a lot because __________________ a nice place.
I went Oxford, where ________________ a lot of old buildings.

Plural & uncountable nouns

Which is correct?
There are sheeps in the field.

There are sheep in the fields.

Which countries have you been to?

Which countrys have you been to?

We add s to singular nouns to make regular plurals: piece pieces

pound - pounds

We have to make changes to some plural noun endings

-s, -sh, -ch, -x - + -es glass glasses

dish dishes

consonant + -y - -ies

country countries

-f, -fe - -ves

self selves

watch watches

box boxes

study studies

shelf shelves

knife knives

Some plural nouns are:

irregular: man men

child children person people foot feet broken tooth broken teeth

the same as the singular noun: one fish ten fish a sheep some sheep
We can count plural nouns, but we cannot count cheese, oil, sugar, water or money. These are
uncountable nouns (also things like furniture, food, homework, information, music & time)
I dont want any cheese.

I dont want a piece of cheese.

Complete the unfinished word

1. Two chil______ were playing on the beach.
2. The man at the bar gave us two glas_____ of water.
3. Is there any sug____ in this coffee?
4. Ive got some new shel_____ for my boks.
5. I cant walk any more my f_____ hurt!

Can you lend me some money?

much & many

Which is correct?
Theres a lot of furniture in my room.

Theres much furniture in my room.

Id like to visit as much places as I can.

Id like to visit as many places as I can.

We use much with uncountable nouns:

after negative verbs I didnt have much money
in questions How much water do you need?
After as/so/too It take too much time to walk to school.
In the same way we use many with countable nouns
Are there many people in the class?

There are so many museums in London.

In general we dont use many/much + noun after positive verbs. We use a lot of/lots of (especially
when using informal English)
There was a lot of food at the party. (not There was much food at the party)
You can find lots of cinemas in this area. (not You can find many cinemas in this area)
We can also use a lot of/lots of after negative verbs & in questions
I dont have a lot of money/I dont have lots of money. Are there a lot of/lots of people in the
class?

Which is the correct form? In some cases both forms may be correct.
1. I like many/much kinds of music.
2. I want to sell lots of/many books.
3. Did you get many/lots of presents for your birthday?
4. Private lessons cost too much/many/a lot of money.
5. I didnt see a lot of/many/much films last month.

like, would like, want

Which is correct?
I like to go swimming tomorrow.

Id like to go swimming tomorrow

If you want the ticket please call me. If you like the ticket please call me.

We use like to talk about things that please us:

specific things I like my new glasses. I like the food in this Italian restaurant.
general things I like going to the theatre, but I dont like watching films very much.
We use would like to say what would please us either now or in the future. (the negative wouldnt

like only refers to the now)

Id like to go out walking this evening. Id like a well paid job, but I dont like to work long hours.
We can also use want instead of would like, but want is stronger/less polite
I want to go out walking this evening. I dont want to live in Jakarta.
We use want & would like when we make offers
Would you like something to eat?

Do you want something to eat?

Which is the correct form? In some cases both forms may be correct.
1. Id like/like some hot coffee please.
2. Wed like/Wed want to stay here until next week.
3. We didnt want/ wouldnt like to stay out too late last night.
4. I work with a computer but I dont like/wouldnt like using it for too long,
5. My friend wants/ will want to visit me next week.