12 English Grammar Mistakes That Give Learners Away

Priya Sharma

Priya Sharma writes English learning guides for ESL students. Pune-based language enthusiast.

Visual representation of the voice · not a photographic portrait

Quick answer: The mistakes that mark you as a learner are few and repeat everywhere: saying "I have 20 years" instead of "I am 20", using "since" where you need "for", adding "-s" to adjectives, and putting the adverb between the verb and its object. Each one has a short rule you can learn in a minute. Fix these twelve first and your English sounds much closer to natural before you learn any new vocabulary.↗ Share on X

If your English feels correct on paper but people still hear that you are a learner, the cause is usually not vocabulary. It is a short list of grammar habits that repeat in almost every sentence. Twelve of them do most of the damage: the missing "-s" on he/she/it, "I have 20 years" instead of "I am 20", "since" used where "for" belongs, adjectives with a plural "-s", the adverb dropped between a verb and its object, and a few more below. Each one has a rule you can say in a single line. Learn the rule, then drill it in a sentence about your own life, because that is what makes it stick.

The twelve mistakes, side by side

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Why does the "-s" on he, she and it matter so much?

Because it comes back every few seconds in conversation. "He work", "she go", "it cost" all sound wrong to a listener immediately, even when the rest of the sentence is perfect.

The rule is small: in the present simple, add "-s" only for he, she, it, and for any single person or thing you can replace with those words. My brother works. The bus leaves. That price includes tax.

Drill: say five true sentences about people in your family, all in the present. My sister works in a hospital. My father drives a truck. Say them out loud, not in your head.

When do I use "since" and when do I use "for"?

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Use since with a starting point: since Monday, since 2019, since I was a child, since breakfast.

Use for with a length: for two hours, for three years, for a long time, for a while.

The most common error is mixing them with the wrong tense. Both usually pair with the present perfect: "I have worked here for six years" or "I have worked here since 2019", not "I work here since 2019."

Drill: write two sentences about the same fact, one with "since" and one with "for". I have had this phone since March. I have had this phone for six months.

What is the correct word order in an English sentence?

The default is subject, verb, object: I bought a car. Anything extra usually goes after the object or at the beginning, not in the middle.

• Wrong: I speak very well English.
• Right: I speak English very well.
• Wrong: She reads every day the news.
• Right: She reads the news every day. / Every day she reads the news.

There is one common exception: short adverbs of frequency (always, never, often, usually, sometimes) go before the main verb but after "be". I always drink coffee. She is always late.

Drill: take five sentences you wrote this week and move every "very well", "every day" and "a lot" to the end.

Which small words do learners get wrong most often?

These four cause more confusion than any grammar rule:

1. make and do. You *do* work, homework, exercise, the dishes, business. You *make* a mistake, a decision, dinner, money, plans, noise. When you are unsure, "do" is safer for tasks and "make" is safer for creating something.

2. say and tell. You *tell* a person something. You *say* something to a person. He told me the truth. He said the truth to me. Never "he told that" without a person.

3. in, on and at. For time: at a clock time (at 7), on a day (on Monday), in a month, year or long period (in July, in 2020, in the morning).

4. borrow and lend. You *borrow* from someone (you receive). You *lend* to someone (you give). Can I borrow your pen? I lent him my pen.

How do I fix a mistake I have made for years?

Knowing a rule and using it are different skills. Old habits come back when you are nervous or tired, so the practice has to be small and constant, not long and rare. Here is a routine that fits into ten minutes a day:

1. Pick one mistake for the whole week. Only one. Write it on a card where you work.

2. Say ten true sentences out loud every morning using that structure, all about your real life. Real sentences stick; textbook sentences do not.

3. Record yourself once, for one minute, talking about your day. Do not prepare.

4. Listen back and count how many times you made that one mistake. Write the number down.

5. Write three sentences at night using the correct form, about what actually happened that day.

6. On day seven, compare your first recording with a new one. You are looking for a smaller number, not a perfect score.

7. Next week, new mistake. Do not go back and redo the old one unless the number stopped dropping.

Twelve weeks with this routine covers the whole table above.

How do I check my own English without a teacher?

Three habits work well and cost nothing:

• Read your sentence out loud slowly. Many errors are heard before they are seen, especially missing "-s" and missing articles.
• Search the exact phrase in quotation marks in a search engine and see whether real pages use it. If almost nothing comes back, the phrase is probably not natural.
• Keep an error notebook, one line per mistake: the wrong sentence, the right sentence, the date. Reread it every Sunday. Your own list is more useful than any general list, because it shows the mistakes your brain actually makes.

What if my grammar is fine but people still ask me to repeat?

Then the problem has moved from grammar to sound, and the fix is different. Focus on word stress (the strong syllable in a long word), on final consonants that English keeps and many languages drop, and on linking words together instead of pronouncing each one separately. Shadowing helps: play ten seconds of a video, say it at the same time as the speaker, repeat until your rhythm matches. Ten minutes a day, same short clip for a week.

Your next step today

Choose one line from the table above — the one you recognized instantly as your own mistake. Write the correct form on a card. Then say ten true sentences out loud using it, right now, about your job, your family and your week. Tomorrow, say ten more. Do not move to the second mistake until you can hear yourself getting the first one right without stopping to think.

FAQ

Which mistake should I fix first if I only have time for one?

Fix the third person "-s" (he works, she goes, it costs). It appears in almost every conversation, and dropping it is the fastest way for a listener to notice you are still learning.

Do native speakers really break these rules?

Yes, in casual speech, and that is normal. The difference is that they break a rule on purpose and can switch back for a job interview or an email. Learn the standard form first, then you can choose when to relax it.

How long does it take to stop making these mistakes?

It depends on how much you speak, not on how much you study. Most learners see clear change after a few weeks of daily practice with one mistake at a time, because the goal is habit, not knowledge.