Examples of Subtle Grammatical Errors in ESL Essays (and How to Fix Them)

📚 Subtle Grammatical Errors in ESL Essays

Subtle grammatical errors can be difficult to spot but significantly impact the clarity and professionalism of ESL essays. Understanding and correcting these errors is crucial for effective communication.

Quick Study Guide

• 📌 Article Usage: Incorrect or missing articles (a, an, the).
• ⏱️ Tense Consistency: Shifting verb tenses inappropriately.
• 🤝 Subject-Verb Agreement: Singular subjects with plural verbs (or vice versa).
• ♾️ Countable vs. Uncountable Nouns: Using countable nouns as uncountable, and vice versa.
• 📍 Prepositions: Incorrect use of prepositions (in, on, at, to, etc.).
• ➕ Word Order: Incorrect sentence structure, especially with adverbs of frequency.
• ✏️ Pronoun Agreement: Pronouns not agreeing in number and gender with their antecedents.

Practice Quiz

1. Question 1: Which sentence demonstrates incorrect article usage?
   1. A. I went to the store yesterday.
   2. B. She is a doctor.
   3. C. He is the engineer.
   4. D. I need a water.
2. Question 2: Identify the sentence with incorrect tense consistency.
   1. A. I went to the park and played football.
   2. B. She will go to the party and brings a gift.
   3. C. He is studying hard because he has an exam tomorrow.
   4. D. They have lived here for ten years.
3. Question 3: Which sentence has a subject-verb agreement error?
   1. A. The cat sleeps on the bed.
   2. B. The dogs are barking loudly.
   3. C. She sing beautifully.
   4. D. They play soccer every weekend.
4. Question 4: Which sentence incorrectly uses countable/uncountable nouns?
   1. A. I need some advice.
   2. B. They have many furnitures in their house.
   3. C. She drank a glass of water.
   4. D. He gave me a piece of information.
5. Question 5: Identify the sentence with the incorrect preposition.
   1. A. She is good at playing the piano.
   2. B. He is interested on history.
   3. C. They are waiting for the bus.
   4. D. I am going to the library.
6. Question 6: Which sentence has incorrect word order?
   1. A. I always go to the gym.
   2. B. She often is late for work.
   3. C. They usually eat dinner at home.
   4. D. He rarely visits his parents.
7. Question 7: Which sentence has a pronoun agreement error?
   1. A. Every student should bring their own book.
   2. B. The team played well, and it won the game.
   3. C. She likes to read books by herself.
   4. D. He finished his homework quickly.