UNIT 1

ERROR IDENTIFICATION
The error categories in English grammar

1. Tenses
2. Pronouns
3. Adverbs and Adjectives
4. Conjunction
5. Preposition
ERROR BASED ON
TENSES
1. Tenses: Error Types

1. Annoying verbs
2. Illogical tense switches
A. Inconsistent tense usage
B. Incorrect verb forms
C. Missing or incorrect tense markers
D. Future tense instead of future perfect
E. Past perfect tense errors
3. The conditional
 1. Tenses: Annoying Verbs
◦ It's important to understand the correct usage and verb
forms of these annoying verbs to avoid tense errors in your
writing.

◦ Other annoying verbs that often lead to tense errors

include:-
◦ Sit/set
◦ Rise/raise
◦ Lead/led
1. Tenses: Annoying Verbs
◦ Examples:
◦ You LIE down for a nap.
◦ You LAY something down on the table.
◦ You LAY down yesterday.
◦ You SWIM across the English Channel.
◦ You SWAM across the Atlantic Ocean last year.
◦ You had SWUM across the bathtub as a child.
◦ You DRINK a glass of water every morning.
◦ You DRANK a glass of water yesterday.
◦ You have DRUNK three gallons of water this week.
1. Tenses: Annoying Verbs
◦ "I laid in bed all day, but I couldn't sleep because I was too
excited to go to the party tonight.”

◦ Error:- "Laid" is the past tense of the verb "lay", which

requires a direct object (e.g., "I laid the book on the table").
◦ In this sentence, the correct verb form should be "lay", which is
the past tense of the verb "lie" (meaning "to recline" or "to
rest").
1. Tenses: Annoying Verbs
◦ "I laid in bed all day, but I couldn't sleep because I was too
excited to go to the party tonight.“

◦ Corrected sentence: " I lay in bed all day, but I couldn't

sleep because I was too excited to go to the party tonight.“
2. Tenses: illogical Tense
Switch
Illogical tense switches can occur when:
◦ Switching between past, present, and future tenses without a
clear reason.
◦ Using a different tense for no apparent reason.
◦ Forgetting to maintain a consistent tense throughout a
sentence or paragraph.
To avoid illogical tense switches, it's essential to:-
◦ Choose a tense and stick to it.
◦ Use transitional words and phrases to connect ideas logically.
◦ Proofread carefully to detect and correct tense errors.
2. Tenses: illogical Tense
Switch
◦ "I was studying for my exam, and then I realize I forgot my
lunch on the kitchen counter.”

◦ Error:- The sentence starts in the past tense ("I was

studying"), but then suddenly switches to the present tense ("I
realize").

◦ This switch is illogical because the sentence is describing a

past event, and the verb tense should consistent throughout.
2. Tenses: illogical Tense
Switch
◦ "I was studying for my exam, and then I realize I forgot my
lunch on the kitchen counter.“

◦ Corrected sentence: "I was studying for my exam, and then I

realized I forgot my lunch on the kitchen counter.”

◦ In this corrected sentence, the verb tense is consistent

throughout, using the past tense ("was studying", "realized") to
describe a past event.
2. A. Tenses: inconsistent tense
usage

Inconsistent tense usage can occur when:

◦ Switching between past, present, and future tenses without a
clear reason.
◦ Using different tenses for parallel actions or events.
◦ Failing to maintain a consistent tense throughout a sentence,
paragraph, or text.
To avoid inconsistent tense usage, it's essential to:-
◦ Choose a tense and stick to it.
◦ Use consistent verb forms for parallel actions or events.
◦ Proofread carefully to detect and correct tense errors.
2. A. Tenses: inconsistent tense
usage
◦ "I went to the store, and then I buy some milk. After that, I
walked home and made dinner.”

◦ Error:- The sentence starts in the past tense ("I went"), but
then switches to the present tense ("I buy").Later, it switches
back to the past tense ("I walked", "I made").
2. A. Tenses: inconsistent tense
usage
◦ "I went to the store, and then I buy some milk. After that, I
walked home and made dinner.“

◦ Corrected sentence: "I went to the store, and then I bought

some milk. After that, I walked home and made dinner.”

◦ In this corrected sentence, the verb tense is consistent

throughout, using the past tense ("went", "bought", "walked",
"made") to describe a past event.
2. B. Tenses: incorrect verb
forms
Incorrect verb forms can occur when:-
◦ Using the wrong verb tense or form (e.g., using the present
tense instead of the past tense).-
◦ Forgetting to add -ed or -ing to verbs.
◦ Using the wrong past participle form (e.g., "went" instead of
"gone").
To avoid incorrect verb forms, it's essential to:-
◦ Know the correct verb conjugation and forms.
◦ Check the verb tense and form in the sentence.
◦ Proofread carefully to detect and correct verb errors.
2. B. Tenses: incorrect verb
forms
"By the time I arrived, they already begun the meeting.”

Error:- The verb form "begun" is incorrect in this context.

"Begun" is the past participle of the verb "begin", and it needs to
be used with "had" to form the past perfect tense.

The correct verb form in this sentence should be "had begun".

2. B. Tenses: incorrect verb
forms
"By the time I arrived, they already begun the meeting.”

Corrected: "By the time I arrived, they had already begun the
meeting."

The correct verb form in this sentence should be "had begun".

2. C. Missing or incorrect tense
markers
Missing or incorrect tense markers can occur when:-
◦ Forgetting to add -ed to regular verbs in the past tense (e.g., "I
talk" instead of "I talked").
◦ Using the wrong tense marker (e.g., "I goed" instead of "I
went").
◦ Forgetting to add the past perfect tense marker "had" (e.g., "I
eat" instead of "I had eaten").
To avoid this, it's essential to:-
◦ Know the correct verb conjugation and forms.
◦ Check the verb tense and form in the sentence.
◦ Proofread carefully to detect and correct verb errors.
2. C. Missing or incorrect tense
markers
"I walk to school yesterday.”

Error:- The sentence is in the present tense, but it describes an

action that occurred in the past (yesterday).

The verb "walk" needs a past tense marker (-ed) to indicate that
the action occurred in the past.
2. C. Missing or incorrect tense
markers
"I walk to school yesterday.”

Corrected sentence: "I walked to school yesterday.“

In this corrected sentence, the verb "walked" has the past tense
marker (-ed), indicating that the action occurred in the past.
2. D. future tense instead of
future perfect
Using the future tense instead of the future perfect tense can
lead to incorrect or unclear sentences, especially when talking
about actions that will be completed at a specific point in the
future.
2. D. future tense instead of
future perfect
"By next year, I will study English for three years.”

Error:- The sentence uses the future tense ("will study"), but it
should use the future perfect tense ("will have studied") to
indicate that the action will be completed at a specific point in
the future (by next year).

The future perfect tense is needed to show that the three

years of studying will be completed by next year.
2. D. future tense instead of
future perfect
"By next year, I will study English for three years.”

Corrected sentence: "By next year, I will have studied

English for three years.”

In this corrected sentence, the verb "will have studied" is in

the future perfect tense, indicating that the action of studying
will be completed by next year.
2. E. Past perfect tense errors
Past perfect tense errors can occur when:-
• Using the simple past tense instead of the past perfect tense.
• Forgetting to add "had" to the verb.
• Using the past perfect tense incorrectly with other verb
forms.
2. E. Past perfect tense errors
"I had eaten dinner, and then I went to the movies at 8pm. But
when I arrived, the movie already started.”
Note:
The sentence uses the past perfect tense ("had eaten") correctly
to show that the action of eating dinner was completed before
another action in the past (going to the movies).
However, the sentence then uses the simple past tense
("started") instead of the past perfect tense ("had started") to
describe the second action (the movie starting).-
The correct sentence uses the past perfect tense ("had started")
to show that the movie had started before the speaker arrived.

"I had eaten dinner, and then I went to the movies at 8pm. But
when I arrived, the movie had already started.”
3. Tenses: The Conditionals
Conditional tense errors can occur when:-
◦ Using the wrong verb form in the conditional clause.
◦ Forgetting to use the conditional tense in the main clause.-
◦ Mixing up the tenses in the conditional sentence.
3. Tenses: The Conditionals
"If I would have studied harder, I would pass the exam.”
Error:-
• The sentence uses the conditional tense ("would have
studied") correctly to describe a hypothetical past action.
• However, the sentence then uses the present tense ("would
pass") instead of the conditional perfect tense ("would have
passed") to describe the hypothetical outcome.
• The correct sentence should use the conditional perfect tense
("would have passed") to show that the passing of the exam
is a hypothetical outcome of the past action (studying
harder).
3. Tenses: The Conditionals
"If I would have studied harder, I would pass the exam.”

Corrected sentence: "If I had studied harder, I would have

passed the exam.”

In this corrected sentence, both clauses are in the

correct conditional tense:-
• "If I had studied harder" (conditional past)
• "I would have passed the exam" (conditional perfect)
THANK YOU