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Avoiding Mistakes

* Some nouns are always plural. Examples are:


- outskirts - goods - surroundings - riches - wares - particulars - valuables damages - arms (weapons) - earnings - greens (vegetables) - grounds - pains
(effort - trouble) - quarters - premises - savings - stairs - spirits (alcohol) annals - auspices - credentials.
* We often use a singular verb with some plural nouns related to money, a
period of time, a distance... Examples are:
- Fifty pounds is not enough.
- Ten days is enough.
* The plural of person (persons) is not usually used. People is used instead.
* Some singular nouns (collective nouns) can be used with plural singular
verbs (team, family, audience, committee, staff, government).
* Although some nouns end in -s, we do not usually regard them plural.
Examples are:
- politics, physics, economics, ethics, rickets, hysterics.
* The ('s) is sometimes used with people to refer to their houses. Example is
:
- We will have a party at Tom's (Tom's house).
* Use ('s) with (for + noun + sake) to show the possessiveness. Example is :
- for heaven's sake.
Exceptions are: for goodness' sake, for conscience' sake, for appearance'
sake.
* The ('s) can be used with certain nouns without mentioning the second
noun to refer to place. Example is : The butcher's (the butcher's shop).
* Do not use "the" with names of countries and states. Exceptions are:
- The Yemen, The Sudan.
- If the noun of the country includes words like: republic, union, kingdom or
states.
* Do not use "the" with:

- Islands that have a singular name,


- Names of Individual mountains and lakes,
- Names of street, roads, avenues and squares,
- Two-word names except: The White House and The Royal Palace,
- Titles followed by the name as Queen Victoria,
- Colours and languages,
- Names of Religions,
- Subjects of School,
- Prison, school, university, college, hospital and church when are visited or
used for their primary purpose.
* Do not use "the" before abstract nouns. Example is:
- We all fear death.
* Do not use "the" before "man" if you are referring to the human rece.
* If you are using the abstract nouns in a particular sense, use "the".
Example is:
- The death of his wife was a real shock.
* Use "the" before the names of hotels, restaurants, pubs, theaters, cinemas,
museums and galleries.
* Use "the" before the adjectives or the nouns: east, west, north, and south.
* Use "the" before nouns consisting of (nouns + of + nouns) as in the Gulf of
Mexico.
* Use "the" before the names of places and buildings.
* Do not use "a" or "an" before the names of meals unless it (meals) is
preceded by an adjective.
* If the verb ends in "-ie" change them into "y" before adding "-ing".
Example is: die becomes dying.
* The letter "q" should be followed by the vowel "u", except for: Qatar,
Qintar, Qiana, Qibla.
* Do not miss spell "i" and "e":

I before E
Except after C
Or when sounds as A
As in neighbour and weigh. Exceptions are: feign, beight, leisure, neither.
* If the suffic "-full" is added to words ending in "-ll", the second "i" of both
words is dropped. Example is: skill + full = skilful. Note that this rule is not
applicable in American English.
* Many words that end in "-ce" in British English are spelt with "-se" in
American English. Examples are: defence - defense, offence - offense.
* Many words that contain "-ae" and "-oe" in British English are spelt with "a" or "-o" in American English. Example is: mediaevel - medieval.
* If a one-syllable word ends in a vowel "-y", we drop it and add "-ily" to
form a different part of speech. Example is: day - daily.
* There is no word in English ends with "-full" except the adjective "full".
All other adjectives ends in "-ful".
* There are only three words in English end with "-eed" namely: exceed,
succeed and proceed. All other verbs having a similar sound end with "ede".
* The word that contains its opposite it "there".
* Remember that in writing the word "intelligent" it is "i e i e".
* Allright is all wrong I use all right.
* If you misspell the word conscience simply add "con-" to "science".
* Note that the word committee ha double "m", double "t", double "e".
* Pronounce "ph" as "f" in most words except in: haphazard and shepherd.
* Do not pronounce "g" if the word starts with "gn-" as in gnash, gnaw, gnat,
gnome.

* If the word ends with "-gn" or "-gm", do not pronounce "g". Examples are:
sign, resign, paradigm.
* If the word starts with "pt-", do not pronounce "p". Examples are:
ptomaines, ptytis, pitlosis.
* The cluster "Sch-" at the beginning of words can be pronounced in three
different ways:
- /sk/ as in school, and scholar,
- /sh/ as in Schimt, and shwa,
- /s/ as in schism, and schismatic.
* In most words that starts with "wh-" drop "h" in pronunciation. Exceptions
are:
- whole, who, whom.
- Americans pronounce this cluster as /hw/. Example is: when /hwen/.
* Childish = foolish = stupid
Childlike = innocent - simple - -
* Complement = completion - -
Compliment
* Contagious = infectious -
Contiguous -
* Continual
Continuous
* Corps ()
Corpse
* Councillor
Counsellor
* Dairy
Dairy
* Advise is a verb
Advice is a noun

* Altar
Alter
* Cannon
Canon
* Credible
Credulous
Creditable
* Desert as a verb means
Desert as a noun means
Dessert
* Disease
Decease
* Fare
Fair
* Flower
Flour
* Fowl
foul -
* Hair
Hare
* Pane
Pain
* Peal
Peel
* Pour
Pore ) (
* Pray

prey
* Leak
Leek
* Lightening
Lightning
* Lose as a verb
Loose as an adjective -
* Pair
Pare
Pear
* Receipt
Recipe
* Reign
Rain -
Rein ) (
* Sealing
Ceiling -
* Sensible
Sensitive
* Heal
Heel
* Hole
Whole -
Hall
* Human
Humane
* Imminent
Eminent

* Social
Sociable
* Stationary
: Stationery
- -* Temporal
Temporary
* Through
- - Thorough
- * Elusive
Illusive
* Emigrate
Immigrate
Migrate
* Epigram
Epithet
: Epitaph
- - - - * Vain
- Vane
- Vein
* Angle
Angel
* Die
Dye
* Effect
Affect
- - * Elicit
- Illicit

* Eligible
Illegible
* Principal is an adjective
Principle is a noun -
* Prophesy = Prophecy
* Proposition - -
Preposition

Abdul-Fattah Sharif
Certified English-Arabic Translator
ATN/APTS No. 10750
Arab Professional Translators Society
Journalist for Reuters News Agency
Tel: 002 0100 8345078
E-Mail: padiboody@yahoo.com, padi_boody@hotmail.com

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