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.

1. My husband has a good job. She makes over 100,000 dollars a year.
0 m1 a- e( h% C; H! }& A4 t5 W0 _1 |    My girlfriend did not live with me, because he is still in China.

( q, X1 E' y3 lThe 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.
, ~6 N, z5 I7 p+ `: ^( z3. Please close your phone.
These 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.

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" f6 Z& ]) W0 p  o2 ?4. How to say: heavy rain, light rain, and turn off your phone in English?
* E$ J9 u1 m2 W; }! r) RThe correct way to ask the question is like this: how do you say... in English?
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; q* V* B5 `% m4 J- D' q. X% r$ D7 i5. I am a Chinese.
" P6 b, j" |0 fI am a Chinese person, or I am Chinese.
* G4 O# J6 }& M' d6. He is a gay.
He is gay.
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$ ]0 u0 y% v5 M# Q, o+ T4 G, A3 T7. Why? No why.
Not no why, no reason.
8. Thanks! No thanks!
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