It is not only fresh graduates and non-English speakers who make grammatical mistakes.

In fact,
professionals in offices, including journalists, commit certain errors over and over again. 'Anyways', 'prepone' and 'cope up', all come to mind.

Wrong: Each individual data tells a different story. Data is the plural form for datum, a singular noun. Words ending with 'um' usually have an 'a' in the plural form: (stratum/strata) Correct: Each individual datum tells a different story.

Wrong: He is one of those who performs well Even authors make this mistake. They see 'he' and immediately use the singular form. But, because 'he' is part of a group, you use the plural verb. Correct: He is one of those who perform well

Wrong: I came an hour back. When we indicate the past, instead of 'back', we must use 'ago'. Correct: I came an hour ago.

Wrong: She has went to the store. Many people do not know the conjugation of English verbs. With the verb 'to go', the conjugation is: 'go, went, gone'. You say 'go' in the present, 'went' in the past, and 'gone' in the past participle. Past participle is used only with auxiliary verbs like 'have' or 'has'. Correct: She has gone to the store.

Wrong: Even after a laps of three months, I was still granted a visa. The word here is 'lapse', to denote passage of time. 'Lap' means either the flat area between one's stomach and knees (the child slept on my lap) or the circuit of a track/race course (the event had total 12 laps, but he got out in the second lap itself). Correct: Even after a lapse of three months, I was still granted a visa. Wrong: Please speak politically Wrong: The branch manager is out of order. The customer service agent made both of these blunders in one call. She obviously meant:

Correct: Please speak politely. Correct: The branch manager is out of office.

Wrong: He have no sense 'He' is singular, so the verb is singular as well, 'has'. Correct: He has no sense. Last but not the least, a letter forwarding a demand draft concludes: 'We shall appreciate if you will acknowledge safe receipt of this communication and settlement accordingly in due course.' I don't even know where to begin. What I do know is that brevity is important.

WRONG: The council library was quiet noisy. RIGHT: The council library was quite noisy. The term 'quiet' is the opposite of noisy. The correct word for emphasising a point is 'quite'. ~ WRONG: A friendly remainder: Please do not forget to remain in your seats after the speech. RIGHT: A friendly reminder: Please do not forget to remain in your seats after the speech. 'Remainder' is something that is left behind. The correct word to use when asking someone not to forget something is 'reminder'. ~ WRONG: I want to learn piano. RIGHT: I want to learn to play the piano. ~ WRONG: I like listening music. RIGHT: I like listening to music. ~ WRONG: He comes to office by bus, but I come to office by walk. RIGHT: I walk to the office. 'By' is a used only if you use a vehicle for transport. 1. A word that is often used incorrectly is 'advance'. My daughter received a birthday card, much ahead of the actual date, with the message, "Advanced birthday wishes from...". The sender intended to state that the card arrived a bit early, and in no way has any advanced features, right? The correct way to state that then would be: "Birthday wishes, in advance". In another case, a number of websites carry an 'Advance search' option. The purpose is to offer users a more specialised search option. In this context, the correct term would be 'Advanced', which means superior in some way. 2. Using the word 'entitled' in the context of 'having a title of' is wrong. Many articles misuse the word, saying "...in his book entitled...". Simply replacing 'entitled' with a comma will correct the sentence.

That person is very childish; he doesn't know how to behave in the office. Incorrect: 10. 'Any which ways you look at it, it's the same'. Proper: 'Any way you look at it, it's the same' OR 'Whichever way you look at it, it's the same'." Nilovna has also been compiling bloopers for years. Here are some of her favourites: 1. "Myself Miss Aarti Sinha." "She cooked dinner for Tarika, Dipti and myself." "Albert, Maria and myself went to the movies." This one's an epidemic! More and more people academically, officially and professionally have been using the word 'myself' instead of 'my name', 'me' and 'I'. They think it sounds 'cultured'; in reality, it sounds foolish. The above should be: ~"My name is Miss Aarti Sinha." ~"She cooked dinner for Takirka, Dipti and me." ~"Albert, Maria and I went to the movies." 2. "Please go ahead. I am coming back of you." "I finished the exam in front of her." Back and front refer to direction, not length of time. Instead, use: ~ "Please go ahead. I will come after you." ~ "I finished the exam before her." 3. "Reply fastly!" This one is rampant in chat windows and e-mail inboxes! In fact, there's no such word as 'fastly'. ~ "Reply quickly!" is the correct way of saying it. 4. "There is very much risk in this work." "It is very much hot today." These are sentences sound unnatural. Instead, try: ~ "There is a lot of risk involved in this work." ~ "It is very hot today." The next one's a classic, and my all-time favourite! 5. "I am like this only." "She is like that only." The frequent misuse of the word 'only' in Indian English is astonishing! The above should be:

~ "This is the way I am." ~ "That is the way she is." Sourav Shah, a 25-year-old marketing executive from Pune sent in the following English error, which we come across rather often as well: 1. "I cannot cope up with this hectic schedule." "I was stuck up in traffic." 'Up' should not be attached to verbs like 'cope' and 'stuck', but we Indians do it all the time! ~ "I cannot cope with this hectic schedule." ~ "I was stuck in traffic." 1. I didn't knew her mother when I was young. If it was affirmative, it would be 'I knew her mother when I was young.' In this case, the negative, past verb 'did not' denotes the past tense, making 'knew' unneeded. It should be: ~ I didn't know her mother when I was young. 2. I prefer studying in the midnight. 3. I prefer studying at the morning. In the morning, in the afternoon and in the evening all denote a general time. For a specific time, such as noon and night, you must use 'at'. It should be: ~I prefer studying at midnight. ~I prefer studying in the morning. 4. I was excepting a better show. 5. No one showed up to the party, accept Dipti and Rishi. 6. Will you expect my sincere apologies? These words are often confusing for some people: except, expect and accept. Except is to omit or leave out. Expect is to demand or to count on. Accept means to acknowledge, admit. ~ I was expecting a better show. ~ No one showed up at the party, except Dipti and Rishi. ~ Will you accept my sincere apologies? 7. On what bases can you argue with me? 8. Where are the criminal basis in Mumbai?

Bases and basis essentially, mean the same but it is important to use the right word in the right place. Base is a foundation (as in a building, structure). Basis is also a foundation in terms of a fundamental or principle; it is abstract. ~ On what basis can you argue with me? ~ What are the criminal bases in Mumbai? 9. In case of feeling of Hot or Cold please to control yourself This is all jumbled and makes no sense! Instead, it should be: ~ In case you find the temperature too hot or too cold, please turn the thermostat switch to the desired setting to regulate the temperature. . 'I was wanting to learn piano for a long time.' In the past-perfect tense, you use the past tense of the verb by itself. In this case: ~ 'I wanted to learn piano for a long time.' 2. 'I must have done this long ago.' 'I should have made a mistake.' 'Should have' talks about an opportunity that has been missed. On the other hand, 'must have' talks about a past event that went without notice. They should be written as follows: ~ 'I should have done this long ago.' ~ 'I must have made a mistake.' 1. 'Do you know who is she?' In this case, the verb and the subject must switch places. ~ 'Do you know who she is?' 2. 'What nonsense you are talking?' Though intended to be a question, the above is formed like a declaration. It should be: ~ 'Are you talking nonsense?' 3. 'I live backside of that building.' This is a very common mistake in India. The sequence of words 'live backside of' is grammatically incorrect. It should be: ~ 'I live behind that building.' . The concerned person is not there Read literally, this means the worried person is not present. What the speaker actually meant to say is that the person who is involved is not present. The correct way to say this would be: ~ The person concerned is not there. 2. We discussed about the project. This is a blunder. Discussed is an action verb; therefore, it must be followed by the object. Adding 'about' is unnecessary and improper. So it would be: ~ We discussed the project.

3. Anyways, afterwards we went to the party. Here, the word anyway has an 's' attached improperly. In US English, afterward is acceptable, but 'anyways' is NEVER acceptable. The correct way to say this would be: ~ Anyway, afterwards we went to the party. 1. I practice cricket every morning. 2. Practise makes perfect. Practice is a noun and practise is a verb. This also happens with advise/ advice. Here's the correct version. ~ I practise cricket every morning. ~ Practice makes perfect.

Here's another one: 3. There was a tough contest among Australia and South Africa. 4. The prize will be divided between the three groups. 'Between' is used when there are two objects. 'Among' is used when there are more than two objects. Therefore, it should be: ~ There was a tough contest between Australia and South Africa. ~ The prize will be divided among the three groups. 5. I haven't found it nowhere. 6. He didn't do nothing at office! In both cases, the speaker uses the dreaded 'double-negative'. The second negative in English, unlike most languages, cancels the effect of the first negative. The result is that the speaker is saying the exact opposite of what her or she intends! It should be: ~ I haven't found it anywhere. ~ He didn't do anything at office. Wrong: I kindly request you to approve the leave One does not need to be kind enough to request his or her boss for leave approval. It is his or her boss who needs to be kind to approve the request (Though it's kind of old fashioned to make a request using this kind of language, it still works in official lingo). Correct: I request you to kindly approve the leave

Clement Fernando of Mumbai, sent these bloopers that he's encountered through the years: 1. One of the professors in a college left the classroom angrily. He stormed into the principal's office. Principal asked, 'Professor! What is the problem?' The professor replied, 'The girls are lying with me and with you'. The principal could figure out what the professor tried to convey but couldn't control his laughter. Here, 'lying with' has an unwanted connotation. The professor meant to use the preposition 'to', which makes sense in this situation. ~ The girls are lying to me 2. Today's date is on 28 May 2007. A date is a date -- there is no need to indicate where or when. ~Today's date is 28 May, 2007. 3. ~ He gave the candy to you and I. In this case, the subject is 'he' and the direct objects are 'you and I'. I, however, can only be used as a subject. Therefore, it should be 'you and me'. ~ He gave the candy to you and me. One of my student wanted a book. Even though you are talking about an individual student, you are still mentioning them as part of a larger group. Therefore, it should be students instead of student. ~ One of my students wanted a book. 2. She do not know the answer. This is one of those tricky parts of English, verb conjugations. The verb 'do' stays as 'do' for firstperson singular/ plural, second-person singular/ plural and third-person plural. For third-person singular, however, it changes to 'does'. It should be: ~ She does not know the answer. 3. The examinations are preponed. We've received countless e-mails identifying this mistake. Preponed is supposed to be the opposite of postponed, only there's a problem -- preponed isn't in the English dictionary! Instead, use advanced. ~ The examinations are advanced. 1. Have you removed tickets? This is an exact translation from the Hindi/ Marathi version: 'Ticket nikala kya?'/ 'Ticket kaadhle kaa?' It should be: ~ Have you bought the tickets?

2. You are a doctor, no? This is another common mistake, probably arising as a result of a direct translation from Hindi. We always add 'na' on to the end of each sentenc.! It should be: ~ Aren't you a doctor? OR Are you a doctor? 3. He is very heighted. There is no such word as 'heighted' in the English language. You could say, 'he has height' but this would be awkward. Instead, try: ~ He is very tall. 4. I went there, only. Again, this is another common mistake. One hears it so frequently that it doesn't even sound like a mistake! It also arises from literal translations of Hindi. Most of the time, 'only' can be cut from your speech. ~ I went there. I bought new furnitures for the bedroom. ~ Please bring along the film equipments! ~ Display the datas in a graph. ~ Did you see the deers in the forest? ~ There were many pretty womans at the party! ~ What were the different criterias for joining? ~ I'm interested in misunderstood phenomenas. The common problem linking these bloopers is using the incorrect plural form of the noun. All of them have 's' added on to the end when it is unnecessary. The correct version would be: ~ I bought new furniture for the bedroom. (Furniture is plural as well as singular.) ~ Please bring along the film equipment! (Equipment is plural as well as singular.) ~ Display the data in a graph. (Datum is singular; data is plural.) ~ Did you see the deer in the forest? (Deer is singular and plural.) ~ There were many pretty women at the party! (Woman is singular; women is plural.) ~ What were the different criteria for joining? (Criterion is singular; criteria is plural.) ~ I'm interested in misunderstood phenomena. (Phenomenon is singular; phenomena is plural.)

Srihari, a 36-year-old from Bangalore working in IT enabled services, sent a few bloopers he commonly hears in office. Blooper no 1: ~ Every Sunday, I take headbath. The correct version should be: ~ Every Sunday, I wash my hair. Blooper no 2: ~ I sended that parcel. This is common mistake. English has many irregular verbs in the past tense. Sent is the past form of send. ~ I sent that parcel. Blooper no 3: ~ I will call you today night. Just dissecting the word, to-day, shows the origin. It means during the day. Therefore, you should use to-night. ~ I will call you tonight Blooper no 4: ~ Can I have your name? ~ Can I go to the toilet? ~ Can I hold your hand? This is one of the most common misuses of a word in the English language. Of course you *can* have someone's name, just as easily as you *can* go the toilet or hold someone's hand. Can means whether or not you are able to do it. May means whether or not you have permission to do it. ~ May I have your name? ~ May I go to the toilet? ~ May I hold your hand? Please return my book back. ~ Could you repeat that last line again?

In both cases, the final word is redundant. When you return a book, you give it back to the owner. When you repeat a line, you're saying it again. They should read: ~ Please return my book. ~ Could you repeat that last line? Shilpa also noted the following common mistake. ~ I, my sister and Deepa went to the mall 'I' and 'me' are always placed at the end of a list of names/ pronouns. The correct usage is: ~ My sister, Deepa and I went to the mall. SM Hussein from Andhra Pradesh notes the prevalence of other redundancies: ~ The fish aquarium is very large. ~ The dance ballet was lovely. In both cases, the descriptive word is unnecessary. An aquarium houses fish and a ballet is always a dance! The correct usage is simply: ~ The aquarium is very large. ~ The ballet was lovely. Another mistake Hussein hears frequently: ~ I could not able to do it, sir. In this case, either able should be removed or could should be replaced with was. Here are the two correct possibilities: ~ I could not do it, sir. ~ I was not able to do it, sir.

. Order of words WRONG: My all relatives are coming. CORRECT: All my relatives are coming. WRONG: She is absent always. CORRECT: She is always absent. WRONG: What I can do for you? CORRECT: What can I do for you? WRONG: Where you are going? CORRECT: Where are you going? WRONG: There is anything left? CORRECT: Is there anything left? WRONG: These all are mine. CORRECT: All these are mine.

2. Repeating certain words for emphasis WRONG: Morning morning jogging is a good habit. CORRECT: Jogging early in the morning is a good habit. WRONG: The flowers are of different different colors CORRECT: The flowers are of many different colors. WRONG: Small small mistakes are forgivable, not big big blunders. CORRECT: Small mistakes are forgivable, not big blunders. Sanjeev Bedi, a 37-year-old chartered accountant based in Ludhiana, shares some bloopers he has come across. 1. I have given the exams. This is one of the most common mistakes people commit. This is translated from Hindi: 'Maine exams diye hain.' ~ The correct usage is: "I have taken the exams." 2. He was both his father as well as his mentor. This is another very common error. When you use 'both', the 'as well as' is unnecessary or redundant. Use either of the two. ~ He was both his father and his mentor ~ He was his father as well as his mentor. Krishna Chandra Tripathi, a 28-year-old from Allahabad, sends in these examples. 1. She is very proudy. The dictionary does not have a listing for the word 'proudy'. The correct usage is: ~ She is very proud. (This can be both negative and/ or positive.) ~ She is arrogant. (If intended to be used in a negative sense.) 2. Often 'advice' and 'advise' are confused and misused by people. 'Advice' is a noun, while 'advise' is a verb. WRONG: Please advice me on the issue RIGHT: Please advise me on the issue WRONG: What is your advise? RIGHT: What is your advice? . Using prepositions where not required. WRONG: Please don't make me to do it.

CORRECT: Please don't make me do it. WRONG: Don't let him to go. CORRECT: Don't let him go. WRONG: There is so much of noise in this room. CORRECT: There is so much noise in this room. WRONG: Let's go for shopping. CORRECT: Let's go shopping. WRONG: I am hungry. Please order for some food. CORRECT: I am hungry. Please order some food. 2. Omitting prepositions where they are required. WRONG: Please convey her my condolences. CORRECT: Please convey my condolences to her. WRONG: Can you drop me at Pizza Hut? CORRECT: Can you drop me off at Pizza Hut? 3. Other instances of prepositions being used incorrectly. ~ WRONG: I have been working in this company since three years. CORRECT: I have been working in this company for three years. CORRECT: I have been working in this company since 2004. When 'since' is used as a time preposition, it is used only with reference to a specific point of time (eg: since 1995, since last Christmas, since yesterday) or with reference to a period of time that has already elapsed (eg: since childhood, since the probation period). ~ WRONG: Please pay attention on this topic. CORRECT: Please pay attention to this topic. ~ WRONG: I travel on bus. WRONG: I came in bus. CORRECT: I travel by bus. CORRECT: I came by bus. Wrong: If you can do, do. If you cannot, admit yourself Correct: If you can do it, do it. If you cannot do it, admit it to yourself. Wrong: What O'clock you are coming for dinner? Correct: What time are you coming for dinner? Wrong: Take this letter and post yourself. Correct: Please take this letter and post it yourself. Wrong: Can you capable work this Sunday? Correct: Are you able to work this Sunday? Wrong: Both the three of you to do field duty. Correct: All three of you, go do field duty.

Wrong: Mind me to get some flowers this evening. Correct: Please remind me to get some flowers this evening. Wrong: Udupi Hotel fooding is not good. Correct: The food at Udupi Hotel is not good. Meet Sachi Chander, a senior undergraduate at IIT Madras and self-proclaimed fanatic of the English language. He shares the following anecdotes. After writing an English exam, a friend of mine came up to me and the following conversation ensued: Friend: Hey, I wanted to confirm one of my answers. Can you help Myself: Sure, which one was it? Friend: Well, we were supposed to add a suitable preposition in the blank. The question was, 'Bear ____ me for a while.' Naturally, the answer was 'Bear with me for a while.' This means that the speaker requests the person to be patient for a while. My friend, however, changed the meaning completely with his answer: 'Bear chased me for a while.' Of course, this indicated that a bear had actually come and attacked him for a while. This absurd answer left me rolling on the floor with laughter. Another funny incident happened to my friend who was walking in a park with her cousin. Friend: Wow, what a peaceful atmosphere! It's so calm. Cousin: Yes, this calamity is very nice! Calamity refers to a disaster or a tragedy. My friend's cousin mistakenly connected calamity with calm -- a true calamity indeed! Yoganandhan Raja, working in Marketing Research in Mumbai, sent us a few memorable bloopers committed by his sixth standard teacher in Chennai: Wrong: You three both of you sit together separately. Never use the word 'both' when referring to more than two people. Correct: I want the three of you to separate and sit apart from one another.

Wrong: I will recommend the suggestion that you must buy it -- it's a worthable one. The beginning is very confusing and has too many words. And 'worthable' isn't even a word. Correct: I recommend that you buy it; it's a worthwhile purchase.

Wrong: Off all the on fans and lights.

In English, we say 'turn off' or 'switch off' the fans. 'On' and 'off' are adverbs, and thus, must be connected to other verbs. Correct: Please turn off the fans and lights. Krishnaswamy Murali heard the following story circling around the office: Once, my colleague wanted to inform our Director that his mother was seriously ill and that he needed a few days of leave. His application read as follows: Wrong: My mother is very dangerous and I want to saw her. Please leave me three days. The mother is not dangerous! She's very ill. Also, he doesn't want to saw her, which sounds gruesome. Instead he wants to 'see her', or better yet, 'be by her side'. Finally, he is requesting leave; he doesn't want the boss to actually leave him for three days. Correct: My mother is seriously ill and I would like to be by her side. Therefore, I request you grant me leave for three days.
Wrong: Since I have to go to my village to sell my land along with my wife. Please sanction me one week leave. Correct: My wife and I have to go to our village to sell our land. Please sanction me one week of leave. Wrong: My cremation ceremony is at 10:00 am, please grant me half-day leave. Correct: I'm attending a cremation ceremony at 10:00 am; please grant me half-day of leave. Wrong: As I am working in this office I suffering from headache. I request you to leave me today only. Correct: I am suffering from a headache. I request leave for today. Wrong: I only am suffering from fever, please declare one day holiday. Correct: I am suffering from fever. Please grant me leave for today. Wrong: As my headache is paining, please give my leave today. Correct: As I have a painful headache, please grant me leave today. Wrong: I am enclosed herewith... Correct: I have enclosed herewith... Wrong: Dear Sir, with reference to the above, please refer to my below reference. Correct: Dear sir, in reference to the above, please see my observation below. Wrong: As my mother-in-law has expired and I am responsible for it, please grant me ten days leave. Correct: My mother-in-law has expired and I am required to make arrangements for mourning. I request ten days of leave. Wrong: My wife is suffering from sickness and as I am her only husband at home I may be granted leave Correct: My wife is ill and no one is home to assist her. May I be granted a short leave? Wrong: I am in well here, thank you, and hope you are also in the same well. Correct: I am well, thank you. I hope you are the same. Wrong: As I am marrying my daughter, please grant weak leave. Correct: My daughter is to be married. I request one week's leave.

Wrong: I want to shave my son head, kindly please leave me for two days. Correct: As we are to celebrate my son's mundan, I request leave for two days. Wrong: This has reference to your advertisement calling for a 'typist and an accountant - Male or Female'. As I am both and have been for the past several years I am applying for the post. Correct: In reference to your advertisement calling for a 'typist and an accountant', I would like to submit my application. I have served as both a typist and an accountant in the past.