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- Adjectives
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Tag Archives: Adjectives
The difference between “born” and “borne”
Both “born” and “borne” are the past participle (third form) of the verb “bear”. The verb “bear” basically means “carry”. “Born” is used ONLY with reference to a birth of a baby or animal. My son was born on Christmas … Continue reading
How to use “worth”
WRONG It might not work, but I think that in our current circumstances it is worth to try. Using the structure “worth to do something” is a very common mistake. It is ALWAYS WRONG. RIGHT It might not work, but … Continue reading
Pairing adverbs and adjectives
Have a look at this sentence: I have noticed that paragraphs 81 and 82 are virtually similar to paragraphs 5 and 6. “Virtually similar” is incorrect because “virtually” is a non-grading adverb and “similar” is a gradable adjective. “Very similar” … Continue reading
Order of adjectives
Remember the film “My Big Fat Greek Wedding”? I didn’t see it either. But it doesn’t matter. The point I’m going to discuss here is why we can’t say “My Greek Fat Big Wedding”. In English there are rules about … Continue reading
How to use commas
Following up on the previous post, here’s more on how to use commas in English. There are 4 different kinds of comma. I will look at each in a separate post. 1. Listing comma 2. Joining comma 3. Gapping comma … Continue reading
How to use the word “holiday”
WRONG I am currently on holidays. He is on his holidays now and will be returning to the office next week. RIGHT I am currently on holiday. He is on holiday now and will be returning to the office next … Continue reading
Posted in Uncategorized
Tagged Adjectives, British/US English, Nouns, Useful everyday phrases, Verbs
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The difference between “principal” and “principle”
These words are pronounced the same way, but their meanings are different. “Principal” can be an adjective and a noun. It is most commonly used as an adjective, meaning “main” or “most important”: Her principal area of responsibility is economic … Continue reading
How to use the word “risk”
Consider the following: There is a potential risk that the Company may refuse to satisfy your demand. Almost every time I read the word “risk” I have to correct how it is used. This is usually because it is preceded … Continue reading
The difference between Shareholders’ meeting and Shareholders meeting
Do you add the apostrophe to Shareholders’ meeting? Or do you prefer Shareholders meeting, without the apostrophe? Both are in fact correct. It may seem like a very small point, but misunderstanding the underlying grammar is the source of some … Continue reading
Posted in Uncategorized
Tagged Adjectives, Compound nouns, Noun groups, Nouns, Possession, Punctuation, Word order
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Common Mistakes in Business English 