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Henry’s Top Twenty Hates. Henry’s Top Twenty Hates. These errors upset me particularly because they simply shouldn’t be there. We correct them in our students’ first year, again in their second year, then again in their third year and finally in their fourth year. Henry’s Top Twenty Hates.
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Henry’s Top Twenty Hates These errors upset me particularly because they simply shouldn’t be there. We correct them in our students’ first year, again in their second year, then again in their third year and finally in their fourth year...
Henry’s Top Twenty Hates Let’s start at number 20 and go down from there...
20. Listening to music will make you study harder. No – sorry, but listening to music might help you to study harder, but the word make suggests that you will have no alternative but to study harder, which is obviously crazy. The word ‘make’ is usually used to signify insistence (he made me do it), or creation (I made a cake). Be careful when using it!.
19. I like to play computer when I am at home. Really? What music do you play? No – sorry – you can’t ‘play computer’, or ‘play Songkran’ either. You can play either a musical instrument (I play the piano) or a game or sport (I play tennis), and nothing else! You can, however, play games on your computer, or even play computer games, but never just a computer.
18. It’s mean that we are rich! No, no and no! The expression ‘it’s mean’ simply does not exist in English. It should be ‘it means’, but for some reason lots of people put the ‘s’ in the wrong place. Simple, really, but unnecessary.
17. My teacher always gives me good advices. No, sorry, but the word ‘advice’ is uncountable, and so ‘advices’ is impossible. Your teacher can only give you good ‘advice’ however willing and helpful he or she is...
16. Some say people that Som Tam is delicious, which I agree with this.
16. Some say people that Som Tam is delicious, which I agree with this.
16. Some say people that Som Tam is delicious, which I agree with this. What do you agree with? ‘Which’ or ‘this’? You cannot have two objects of the verb ‘to agree’, so the easiest way to fix this is to leave one of them out. You can either say ‘...which I agree with.’ or ‘...and I agree with this.’
15. I care my mother very much. Sorry – no again. Two possible solutions here. You can either care for your mother, which means that you love her very much, or you can take care of your mother, which means that you look after her, cook for her, etc. Sorry that they are so similar, and yet so different from Thai!
14. Absolutely, music is good for you. The word ‘absolutely’ is extremely complex and quite dangerous. It is used much more in spoken English than written English, so, if you are not absolutely sure how to use it, don’t!
13. , while I did something else. Never, ever, ever, ever, ever put a comma at the beginning of a line. It doesn’t happen, and never should. Just don’t do it!
12. According to the report, it says that we should... Never! The phrase ‘According to somebody (or something)...’ is good if used correctly, but it means exactly the same thing as ‘Somebody (or something) says that...’. This therefore should read either, “The report says that we should...”, or “According to the report, we should...”. Remember this and you will do well!
11. She has been my best friend until now! Oh dear, what’s gone wrong? The expression ‘until now’ means that something has very recently changed, and what was true yesterday or even ten minutes ago is now no longer true. ‘She has always been my best friend and still is’ is fine, unless you have just had a big fight...
The Top Ten... OK, we’ve survived thus far Let’s see what upsets him a bit more!
10. I was very interesting in that subject. No you weren’t – you were interested. It’s simply a case of active or passive, so think about it when you write and try it get it right! As a very rough guide, if it is a thing that you are talking about, the adjective often ends in _ing, but if it is about you or another person, it often ends in _ed.
9. And I love him. Never start a sentence with ‘And’, ‘But’ or ‘So; in academic or ‘Hi-so’ English. All three of them refer back to the first half of a sentence, so there is no need to start a new sentence.
8. Even it is raining, we are going out. No! In this context, the word ‘even’ must be followed by a conjunction, almost always ‘if’ or ‘though’ depending on the rest of the sentence.
7. About English, I enjoy learning it. No! We never introduce a topic of a sentence like that. Instead, we simply go straight into it and say, “I like learning English”.
6. ‘I do all the cooking at home by myself.’ How very sad for you! To do something ‘by yourself’ (or ‘by myself’, ‘by himself’, etc.) means that you do it all alone, with nobody else in the room with you. To do something all by yourself just emphasises the loneliness. Think lonely! If, however, you say, ‘I do all the cooking at home myself’, (without the word ‘by’) this emphasises that it is you and nobody else who does the cooking at home, although you may not actually be alone in the kitchen.
