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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9 {: E) {) f" d  |1. My husband has a good job. She makes over 100,000 dollars a year.
* ]5 o& k9 c( r1 B+ C: J4 ~0 n    My girlfriend did not live with me, because he is still in China.

2 B$ m7 f; Y( Q1 Z9 w" YThe reason to make this mistake is not due to grammar knowledge. One reason might be she and he have the same pronunciation in Chinese.

2. I do not like big rain, I like small rain.
3. Please close your phone.
6 V9 m& G" E. N3 _4 `- U* H3 n" {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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* ]! `& v+ D" C4. How to say: heavy rain, light rain, and turn off your phone in English?
! B+ L$ H* X9 t6 A, G2 p$ h+ sThe correct way to ask the question is like this: how do you say... in English?
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5. I am a Chinese.
3 B- ~: p! @/ HI am a Chinese person, or I am Chinese.
- Y" i- b- h! b9 _. n6 U" f* o7 Z/ I6. He is a gay.
  A* W, ~7 Q) P% H$ AHe is gay.
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7. Why? No why.
! v5 G+ ~3 m; ^' ZNot no why, no reason.
8. Thanks! No thanks!

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