10 mistakes in English you shouldn't be ashamed of

1. Use Past Simple instead of Past Perfect

Past perfect - this is when something happened so long ago that no one remembers why this particular time should be used. If a bunch of exercises for the times gone by doesn't help, just hone Past simple. And relax. In most cases, it will be enough to tell all your adventures from the past.

You can remember the main function of Past Perfect: something happened earlier than something else. She had learned Italian and then moved to Rome. - She learned Italian before moving to Rome. Past Perfect helps you create temporary emphasis. But nothing will change globally if you say She learnt Italian and moved to Rome. - She learned Italian and moved to Rome.

2. Say good instead of well

Confuse these words without a twinge of conscience - in most cases the meaning will not change. You can navigate like this: good is used as an adjective, that is, it answers the question "Which one?" He’s a good singer. - He's a good singer. At the same time, well is an adverb and answers the question "How?" He sings well. - He sings well.

Sometimes the difference is so subtle that it is difficult to see it. He did a good job. - He did a great job. He did the job well. - He did a good job. And only in some cases does the value change, for example Be good! means "Behave yourself" and Be well! Is a wish for health.

3. Confuse phrasal verb

Dastardly phrasal verbs change their meaning depending on the preposition. To tell pass away (die) instead pass out (to lose consciousness) - such to myself. But by the reaction of the person, you will understand that you were wrong. The situation where you split a pair because you messed up make up (put up) with make out (kissing passionately) is also pretty mythical. Most likely, you will simply be asked what you mean.

The main thing is not to avoid phrasal verbs for fear of saying the wrong preposition. First, everyone understands that this is not an easy topic. Secondly, such verbs allow you to concisely and concisely express your thoughts and make you cool.

4. Lose the article

Articles are a strange thing, little understood by Russian-speaking people. At first everything seems to be clear: before the noun you need to put a / an or theif we are talking about something specific. But then there are exceptions, abstract concepts, the names of rivers and lakes, stable phrases and the desire to close the textbook and throw it all out of my head.

Secretly: even if you forget the article, you will still be understood. Adding it where you don't need it is also not a big deal. Much more important is not to be ashamed to speak instead of being silent and trying to remember the rule. Here's a little trick: Whenever possible, use the possessive pronoun where you are in doubt about the article. For example, my apple instead the apple or an apple.

5. Wrong pronunciation of the name

Try reading these British city names: Loughborough, Leicester, Worcester, Hawick. Oops. And here is how these words are pronounced: Laboutfborough, Leste, Batste, Xaboutyk. It is impossible to know exactly how all proper names are read. So do not beat yourself up if you made a mistake with the city, name or even the name of a person. Just ask how to say it correctly.

Even in ordinary words, it can be difficult to pronounce everything perfectly the first time. For example, the same combination of letters is read differently in words tough (taf), though (zou) and neighbor (neibo). But English phonetics should not confuse you: you only knew how many foreign tears were shed over our letters ш, ш, ц and ч. And hard and soft signs in general completely discourage the desire to climb into the jungle of the Russian.

6. Mess with the gerund

Gerund is a verb with the ending -ing, which is used as a noun. There is no exact analogue of the gerund in Russian. Remember the main thing: and I like to read booksand I like reading books means you enjoy reading. It's just that the gerund version emphasizes that the reading process itself is pleasant to you, and not only that you learn something new from the books. Only linguistic nerds pay attention to this.

But sometimes an insidious gerund can still change the meaning of a sentence. For example, Go on reading the article - continue reading the article, and Go on to read the article - go to reading the article after another lesson. She quit working here means she no longer works here. And here She quit to work here - that she quit her previous job to work here. This is a tricky language moment, but over time you will learn to notice the difference.

7. Confuse the singular and plural

It is definitely worth understanding the basic rules here: when to add s (spoiler - almost always), and when es. And learn some words-exceptions that do not change shape, like fish. The rest of the more complex nuances can be recognized endlessly. There are many nouns in English that seem to be solitary but are actually plural. And vice versa. For example, the word "police" is plural: The police are coming. - The police are on their way. At the same time, "news" must be said in the singular: The news is good. - Good news.

The word "money" is also always in the singular: Money is never enough. - There is never a lot of money. Stock market experts say monies in the sense of "amount of money", but this is professional jargon. Don't try this at home. Few people know that the names of football clubs are also often used in the plural. If you are a Chelsea fan, you need to say: Chelsea are the best football club in the world.

8. Do not understand a well-established expression

Idioms are an incomprehensible thing from another culture, and there is nothing shameful in not knowing all the expressions. Even a foreigner who speaks perfectly Russian can be put into a stupor by phrases like "I give a tooth" or "freeze the worm." The situation is the same with English. If you don't understand that to pull somebody's leg - this is not to pull someone by the leg, but to joke, nothing terrible will happen. In a conversation, you can always simply ask again what exactly the person means. And if a strange expression occurs in the series, google the translation.

Create a separate idiom dictionary and re-read the entries. Gradually, you will remember that the phrase It's not rocket science - it's not about spaceships at all, but about something easy to understand. A to hang somebody out todry means to abandon the person without help, not dry up. To beat around the bush - also not about beating bushes. The expression means "beat around the bush", "avoid the main topic."

9. Not knowing when to say whom instead of who

To correctly ask the question "Who are you going on vacation with?", You need to say: Whom are you going on vacation with? But few people remember this. When it comes to choosing between who and whom, even native speakers can get confused. You can help yourself like this: if the answer contains a nominative case, then you need to put who in the question. For example, Who is taking the dog out today? He is. - “Who is going for a walk with the dog today? Is he". If the answer needs to say him, then the question is whom. For example, Whom do you believe? I believe him. - “Who do you believe? I believe him".

In spoken English, whom is often omitted. Therefore, despite the fact that it will be grammatically correct To whom are you talking?most people will say Who are you talking to? But if you are using the official style, you should not forget about whom. For example, the phrase in the letter "For presentation at the place of demand" in English sounds To whom it may concern.

10. Choose the wrong future tense

There seems to be so many ways to speak of the future in English that it’s easier to live in the present. Don't tell anyone, but the difference in future tenses is often negligible. So you will still be correctly understood. The only way to figure out the nuances is to try, make mistakes, and try again.

You can start navigating without going into details:

• Future simple most often means a spontaneous decision.

I will cook chicken for dinner tonight. - I just thought that I will cook chicken for dinner.

• Present continuous describes the exact plan.

I am cooking chicken for dinner tonight, you should come over! - Today I'm cooking chicken for dinner, come visit!

• To be going to underlines your intention.

I am going to cook chicken for dinner tonight, unless my husband got us something else. “I'm going to make chicken for dinner tonight, if my husband hasn't bought something else already.

• Future continuous focuses on the duration of action.

Don’t bother me for the next two hours, I will be cooking. “Don't bother me for the next two hours, I'll cook.

• Future perfect says the action will end in the future.

Talk to me in two hours, I will have cooked dinner by then. “We’ll talk in two hours, I’ll just finish the dinner.”