Minor but significant mistakes you may have made in speaking English

billzhao

Some friends, especially those who are just learning English, often make the following mistakes.
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1. My husband has a good job. She makes over 100,000 dollars a year.
    My girlfriend did not live with me, because he is still in China.
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) U  o1 h1 ]; X- s) d; dThe reason to make this mistake is not due to grammar knowledge. One reason might be she and he have the same pronunciation in Chinese.
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2. I do not like big rain, I like small rain.
3. Please close your phone.
' u5 f! w. a1 k* o" HThese mistakes are made because of direct translation. Another similar mistake is: I very like Canada. You really like Canada, or you like Canada very much.


4. How to say: heavy rain, light rain, and turn off your phone in English?
' U2 y, ]+ ]5 b% c: r+ x: TThe correct way to ask the question is like this: how do you say... in English?

5. I am a Chinese.
I am a Chinese person, or I am Chinese.
- v- k& _. e3 ~/ O. M6. He is a gay.
He is gay.
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7. Why? No why.
Not no why, no reason.
+ k- f5 G9 o# R8 @: Q; j8. Thanks! No thanks!
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