Top 5 Most Frustrating Writing Mistakes (and How to Avoid Them)

Recently Grammarly asked its social media communities which writing mistakes were the worst kinds of errors. Our fans tend to find substantive grammatical trip-ups, like verb errors, far more frustrating than typographical errors and “stylistic” errors, such as homophone misspelling and preposition placement.

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Here are the top five worst writing mistakes and how to avoid and correct them.

1Incorrect verb forms — 51%

Irregular verb forms are one of the most difficult grammar concepts to master, even for native speakers—many of whom use incorrect irregular forms without realizing it. While these “mistakes” are part of English dialects all over the world, these non-standard forms carry a stigma that can significantly damage your credibility if used in formal settings, like business or school. Here are the most common verb conjugation mistakes:

I seen vs. I saw

I seen the movie last week.

I saw the movie last week.

I been vs. I have been

I been there!

I have (I’ve) been there!

I done vs. I did

I done the homework.

I did the homework.

We was vs. we were

We was just about to start the reading.

We were just about to start the reading.

2Subject-verb disagreement — 20%

In many languages, it is important that the subject of the sentence aligns correctly with the verb conjugation in terms of number and gender. Since English does not conjugate verbs to reflect the gender of the subject, you only need to pay close attention to the number of the subject—is it a singular or plural noun?

The struggles that the horse experiences while climbing the mountain is intense.

Here the subject the struggles does not align with the verb “is.” Because struggles is plural, the verb should be are.

The struggles that the horse experiences while climbing the mountain are intense.

In English, irregular verbs and compound subjects make subject-verb agreement somewhat tricky. Irregular verbs, like those above, must be memorized, but compound subjects follow a simple rule—they are plural. See below for an example using the compound subject Jane and Mark.

Jane and Mark are running a marathon this month.

3Run-on sentences — 10%

According to Grammarly’s research, run-on sentences are among the top grammar mistakes made by writers worldwide. A run-on sentence contains two or more independent clauses (a group of words that contains a subject and a verb and that can stand alone as a sentence) that are not connected with correct punctuation. Though there are different kinds of run-on sentence errors, most often writers neglect to use a comma before a coordinating conjunction (and, but, or, etc.).

I enjoy writing immensely but my deadline is looming I am starting to feel overwhelmed.

I enjoy writing immensely, but my deadline is looming; I am starting to feel overwhelmed.

Each independent clause must be set apart from other independent clauses with punctuation or a comma and conjunction. Punctuation marks that are ideal for marking complete sentences are periods (full-stops), semicolons, and em dashes.

4Comma splices — 6%

Comma splices and run-on sentences go hand in hand. In fact, all comma splices are run-on sentences.

He was very hungry, he ate a whole pizza.

He was very hungry. He ate a whole pizza.

He was very hungry, so he ate a whole pizza.

To splice means to connect or join. When a writer joins two independent sentences with a comma instead of separating them with a period or a coordinating conjunction, that’s a comma splice.

The comma has its own jobs to do, but connecting two independent sentences isn’t one of those jobs. Besides, the period gets testy when his sister, the comma, steals his thunder. Periods have their jobs, and so do commas, but never the twain shall meet—unless it’s in the form of a semicolon. Semicolons can also take the place of a coordinating conjunction, such as “and,” “but,” or “so,” among others.

5Pronoun-antecedent disagreement — 5%

John had a card for Helga but couldn’t deliver it because he was in her way.

John had a card for Helga but couldn’t deliver it because Tim was in Helga’s way.

When you use the pronouns “her” or “him,” readers need to know to whom those pronouns refer. A pronoun without a clear antecedent is ambiguous.

In our example sentence demonstrating an ambiguous pronoun, the reader is unsure who the second “he” is. Was John in the way, or was there another “he” involved? As noted in the corrected example, the pronoun “he” refers to Tim, who is card-blocking Helga. Always be sure your pronouns refer to a specific antecedent.

Additionally, 5% of respondents said that the worst error was not listed in the poll. Participants listed homophone, apostrophe, and contraction spelling errors as the most frustrating, while others cited using textspeak in professional settings and plagiarism as the most egregious writing mistakes.

What do you think? We love hearing from our community.

Grammarly’s weekly polls are published every Wednesday and cover a range of subjects related to the state of writing, grammar, and education. You can find and participate in our most recent poll here.

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Can You Actually Use Emojis in Work Emails?

Chances are you encounter emojis on a daily basis. These adorable icons are popping up everywhere—in texts with friends and family, social media posts, and even in the movie theater.

But are they in your work emails? And—here’s the more salient question—should they be in your work emails?

Emoji use has risen steadily since their creation in Japan in the late 1990s. For many of us they’re now a normal part of digital communication, but do they belong in the workplace? If you include a smiley emoji in a message to your boss, are you building rapport—or will your boss think you’re unprofessional? How about sending the pile of poo emoji to a colleague?

Whether you’re plagued with anxiety wondering which emojis are appropriate, or you’ve been showering your colleagues with emojis left and right, you’ll want to keep reading.

Today we’re navigating the subtle nuances of emoji use in the workplace and delivering some real answers for this oft-asked question of business etiquette.

Why Do We Use Emojis?

If there’s controversy around emojis in business communication, then why do we feel compelled to use them? Why not forego them altogether?

The simple answer: we want to be better understood.

Email communication is notoriously problematic in that it lacks the emotional cues we rely on with face-to-face or phone conversations. Without tone of voice or facial expressions to guide us, there’s a lot of room for misunderstanding when we read an email. Messages meant to be positive are often interpreted as neutral, and neutral messages are interpreted as negative.

Remember that time you wrote your boss a detailed, well-thought-out email, only to receive a terse, one-line response? Chances are your boss was happy with your work, but their email failed to convey the warmth and approval that a face-to-face or phone conversation would have.

No one wants to be misunderstood or perceived as a jerk, so we’ve invented ways to circumvent the ambiguity of email. According to a 2014 study, we use emoticons in our emails not to directly convey emotions, but as context clues to show the recipient how to interpret our message. (For example, including a smiley after a line that’s meant to be a joke.)

But when you send that winkie emoji to your boss, are you communicating more effectively or could it actually be hurting your cause?

Why You Shouldn’t Use Emojis in Work Emails

We may have the best of intentions when we use emojis in our work communication (greater warmth, better rapport!) but recent research on emoji use has presented discouraging results.

Grimly titled The Dark Side of a Smiley: Effects of Smiling Emoticons on Virtual First Impressions, the study found that:

…contrary to actual smiles, smileys do not increase perceptions of warmth and actually decrease perceptions of competence. Perceptions of low competence in turn undermined information sharing.

To sum this up, if you use a smiley in communication with someone you don’t know well, they

• Probably won’t perceive your message as “warmer”
• Probably will perceive you as “less competent.”
• Will probably include less information in their response to you because they see you as incompetent

Ouch! That’s a pretty serious backfire. Based on this new information, should we banish emojis from the workplace forever?

Not entirely.

The study also found that a smiley can replace an in-person smile if you already have a relationship with the recipient.

Conclusion? Emojis can be helpful when used in the right context.

Which is great, but now you’re probably wondering what the “right” context is. To answer that question we’ve put together some dos and don’ts of emoji use, and it all comes down to who your audience is.

When NOT to Use Emojis

It’s generally a bad idea to use emojis in the following contexts:

• With someone you have not developed a relationship with
• With your boss or other superiors
• With your clients
• With coworkers you have an uncomfortable relationship with
• In a workplace that is inherently more formal (If you’re wearing a suit, you shouldn’t be using emojis!)
• To fully replace words (e.g., using a heart emoticon instead of the word “love”)
• In a message with bad news or an uncomfortable request (e.g., adding a frownie after asking someone to work over the weekend may annoy the recipient instead of smoothing things over)
• In ambiguously worded messages (The best way to avoid miscommunication is to write clear, unambiguous messages!)

When Emojis Are Beneficial

Here are some contexts where you can use emojis to build rapport:

• With your coworkers if your workplace culture is informal (e.g., at most tech startups)
• Shooting quick emails to your close-knit team
• Chatting with your team on Slack or other messaging apps
• In correspondence with someone at the same level as you who also uses emojis

Here’s a tip: Even in contexts where emoji use is okay, it’s still best to stay away from unusual, ambiguous or offensive emojis. So stick to the basic smiley and limit the smiling poop to your personal texts.

You’ve been lied to. Here’s why you absolutely can end a sentence with a preposition.

Grammar snobs love to tell anyone who will listen: You should NEVER end a sentence with a preposition! Luckily for those poor, persecuted prepositions, that just isn’t true. Here are a few preposition guidelines:

Don’t end a sentence with a preposition

1In formal writing

Which journal was your article published in? (Casual)

In which journal was your article published? (Formal)

It’s not an error to end a sentence with a preposition, but it is a little less formal. In emails, text messages, and notes to friends, it’s perfectly fine. But if you’re writing a research paper or submitting a business proposal and you want to sound very formal, avoid ending sentences with prepositions.

2If something is missing

He walked down the street at a brisk pace, with his waistcoat buttoned against the cold and a jaunty top hat perched atop.

The preposition atop is missing an object all together. Let’s try that again:

He walked down the street at a brisk pace, with his waistcoat buttoned against the cold and a jaunty top hat perched atop his stately head.

It’s ok to end a sentence with a preposition

1 In informal writing or conversation

To whom should I give a high five?

Who should I give a high five to?

Unless you’re a time traveler from another era, you’ll probably use the second sentence when speaking. Informal language is generally accepted in conversation and will likely allow your conversation to flow more smoothly since your friends won’t be distracted by your perfectly precise sentence construction.

2 If the preposition is part of an informal phrase

Five excited puppies are almost too many to put up with.

Also correct:

A good plate of spaghetti should not be so hard to come by.

Both ‘put up with’ and ‘hard to come by’ are commonly accepted informal phrases, and it’s OK to end sentences with them. Note, however, that you should avoid these phrases in formal writing.

What makes up a grammar lover? We studied our Grammarly community and here’s what we found.

Recently, the Grammarly community grew to over 7 million language-loving friends — more than 5 million can be found on Facebook. We have enjoyed sharing our love of language and writing with the world. In honor of the growth of such a passionate and fun community, we surveyed our fans to find out more about what makes a grammar nerd!

Here’s what we found:

What kind of grammar lover are you?

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Quiz: How Understandable Is Your Writing?

Plain language is a style of communication that ensures readers (or listeners) can understand a message quickly, easily, and completely.

But how do you know if you’re actually using plain language? Surely, just being able to decipher business jargon isn’t good enough on its own. How do you know if the language you use is “plain enough”?

To overcome complex jargon, understandable writing and communication

• uses formatting, bullets, and headings to convey information quickly and easily,
• prioritizes simple words over complicated phrases, jargon, and idiomatic phrases, and
• uses the active voice.

To help you decide if your writing is understandable, we’ve put together a quick plain language quiz that looks at your writing habits to tell you whether you’re a plain language master or in need a little practice.

How understandable is your writing? Which bad habits should you work on?

The Skinny on Latin Plurals

If you speak and write English, it’s most common to use an S or ES ending to make a noun plural. However, some words that derive from Latin have retained their Latin plural endings. Let’s talk about some of the most useful of these words. Certain words English has borrowed from Latin retain Latin endings in their plural forms: alga (algae), larva (larvae), and nucleus (nuclei). Two common words—alga and larva—always end in E in the plural form. Alga is rarely singular as it grows in groups. The plural form algae is well-known. Larvae is the plural of larva. To make nucleus plural, you would drop the last two letters and replace them with the letter I. Other plurals are controlled by the context. For example, the plural of appendix can be appendices if you are talking about information that the end of a book. On the other hand, if you’re talking about the part of your anatomy, you would use appendixes.

Here’s a tip: In the world of science, you will often see Latin plurals for focus, formula, index, and vortex (foci, formulae, indices, and vortices, respectively). But in everyday use, they are more likely to appear as focuses, formulas, indexes, and vortexes.

Data is the plural of a Latin word that many don’t know or use—datum. In some scientific fields, it functions as a plural noun that takes a plural verb. (The data were analyzed and recorded.) However, in everyday English, people usually use it as a noncount noun and pair it with a singular verb. Latin gives us many other plurals. Why not make a list of Latin words that you use often and check their plurals? You can start with the ones here and add criterion, syllabus, and any others that you think you will need.

To vs. Too

• To is a preposition with several meanings, including “toward” and “until.”
• Too is an adverb that can mean “excessively” or “also.”
• Just to be clear: two is pronounced the same as to and too, but it can’t be used instead of either of them because it’s a number.

In the hierarchy of things that drive grammar sticklers mad, to and too are near the top. It’s very common to see them confused, abused, and misused, and not just in YouTube comments or on Reddit. People seem to mix up these two funny little words all over the place, and it’s something that can happen to anyone.

How to Use To

To is a preposition and a versatile little word that can be used to say many things. You can use it to indicate a goal or a direction of movement, as well as a place of arrival. That’s the way you use it when you say you’re going to class tomorrow. To also plays a role when we want to indicate that a verb is an infinitive.

You’ll often use to when you want to indicate a relationship between words, relationship like possession, attachment, and addition. You get attached to people, you have things that belong to you. To is also used to indicate a range or a period of time, like when you say it will take you five to ten minutes to finish something.

There are other things for which we use the word to, but by now you should know enough of them to make sure you notice the difference between it and too.

How to Use Too

Too is also a useful little word, but it’s not a preposition like to, and it doesn’t have as many meanings. You can use it instead of “besides,” “in addition,” “also,” or “as well.” But you can use it for other things, too, like when you want to indicate excessiveness. If you find grammar tough, you can say that it’s too hard. In casual speech, speakers sometimes use too in the sense of “very”: That gal is too funny!

To, Too, and Two

Apart from being spelled very similarly, to and too are pronounced the same—[too]. And there’s another word that’s also pronounced that way: the number two. We call words that share a pronunciation homophones, and if you take a look at any list of commonly confused words, you’ll find plenty of homophones on it. Words like there, their, and they’re, your and you’re, and bear and bare are up there, along with to, too, and two. It doesn’t matter whether the homophones have different meanings and uses or if they are in completely different word classes; we still mix them up.

The only way to fix this is to repeat over and over again what each of the homophones means so that people who don’t know it get the chance to learn. For those who know the difference, a few minutes of proofreading should fix the issue.

How to Remember the Difference Between To and Too

Since they are pronounced the same, you don’t have to worry about mixing up to and too in speech. It’s writing that creates problems. But there’s an easy way to make sure you’re using the correct word. Because to can be used in more ways than too, it’s easier to remember that too can be replaced with “also,” “very,” or “excessively.” If you’re not sure whether the to you’ve written should actually be a too, try replacing it with one of those substitutes. If it works, you’ve made a mistake. If it doesn’t, you’re good. You can do the same to make sure that your toos are indeed toos and not tos.

Examples of To vs. Too

Crucially the FCO stopped well short of advising against travel to France, which is the most popular holiday destination in the world (and the second-most popular, after Spain, for UK holidaymakers). —The Independent

Had David Cameron not won an election he never expected to win, he might not have lost a referendum he never expected to lose. —The Guardian

Real Madrid superstar Gareth Bale has announced his engagement to long-term girlfriend Emma Rhys-Jones. —The Daily Mirror

The African turquoise killifish has one of the shortest lifespans of all vertebrates: it reaches the ripe old age of only three to twelve months. —New Scientist

But from what we’ve seen in this tournament I think she meant it, too. —The Guardian

Chances are that too much information running through our small brains clouds our thinking, making it more difficult to do our jobs. —TechCrunch

On the other hand, given that these references are too obvious, they may have been intentionally included to insinuate a Kemalist junta rather than a Gulenist one. —BBC