The Five Most Common Grammar Problems

Problem 1: Punctuation

Do not punctuate unless you know a rule. Don’t punctuate excessively as less punctuation leads to clearer, more readable copy.

Example - Instead of “She managed the restaurant. He did the cooking,” use a semicolon: “She managed the restaurant; he did the cooking.”

Problem 2: Subject and Verb Agreement

Most problems occur with collective subjects, fractions or percentages and compound subjects in which two or more nouns function as the subject of a sentence.

Example – The following sentences use fractions and percentages correctly as a singular subject:

Three-quarters of the pie is gone.

Sixty-seven percent of the voters is needed to withhold a veto.

Problem 3: Correct Use of Pronouns

Pronouns are little words that stand for proper nouns. They help avoid needless repetition in language by doing the work of the larger nouns, called antecedents.

Example – Marianne said she (Marianne) would never color her (Marianne’s) hair.

Problem 4: Sentence Structure

Aside from fragments and run-on sentences, the two other categories that cause most adults problems with sentence structure are faulty parallelism and modifier placement.

Example – In regard to parallel structure, instead of “He enjoys reading and to go skiing,” use the parallel form, saying, “He enjoys reading and fishing.”

Problem 5: Word Usage

Be careful when using words like “affect” and “effect.” Though they sound quite similar, both are used in drastically different situations.

Other examples of confused words include: less vs. fewer; lie vs. lay; sit vs. set