MAJOR BLUNDERS!
Word Usage, Bogus Words, Sentence Structure, and Manuscript Form
Word Usage
These errors comprise the majority of errors students frequently make when
writing, but they should be omitted.
WATCH OUT FOR THESE IN WRITING ESSAYS!
NEVER USE SECOND PERSON ( 2nd) person “You” or “Your”—in writing a formal
paper.
Quick lesson:
Personal Pronouns
1st Person:
I, me, my, mine, we, us, our(s)
2nd Person:
you, your, yours
3rd Person:
he, she, it, him, her, they, them
For example: NEVER write, “You can make better grades by studying harder in an
essay.”
Write, “A person can make better grades …,” “One can make better grades …,”
He/she can make better grades, Students can make better grades or “We can make better
grades …”
Explanation: You/your is only correct in face-to-face conversation, such as when a
teacher is teaching a lesson, when two people are speaking directly to each other, when
the speaker is addressing an audience in a lecture, giving a speech, or when a spiritual
leader is preaching a sermon.
We (first person plural) or he, she, or a person (third person singular) is used when
writers are speaking about something or someone to readers, not directly to them. It also
includes the writer in the message.
NEVER USE CONTRACTIONS IN A FORMAL PAPER. For example, NEVER
write “won’t” for will not, “couldn’t” for could not, “weren’t” for were not, or I’ll” for I
will—unless it is borrowed from someone else (direct quotation).
DO NOT USE RUN-ON (FUSED) SENTENCES, COMMA
FRAGMENTS, OR AWKWARD (CONFUSING) SENTENCES.
SPLICES,
Sentences that run on without proper punctuation (usually a period) are major blunders.
Think of two or more sentences in a collision, without the cars coming to a stop.
Example: We should all learn from our mistakes some of us take longer than others.
(collision of two sentences). What are the three ways to fix this problem?
A comma splice separates one sentence from another with a comma instead of a
semicolon or a period. However, a comma may be used if one of the seven coordinating
conjunctions (and, but, or, for, nor, yet, so) is used after the comma, and a complete
sentence follows. Hint: An easy way to remember all seven coordinating conjunctions
is FANBOYS.
Example: We should all learn from our mistakes, some of us take longer than others.
(comma splice). When you use a comma splice, you are pausing at the end of a sentence
instead of stopping. Thee are two stops in the English language: a ; and a . A semicolon
is a short stop; a period is a long time.
There are three ways to correct this problem as well, but one is the least effective. Which
three ways will correct a comma splice? Which method is the least effect and why?
FRAGMENTS are also major blunders. To have a complete sentence, there must be a
subject and a verb. A fragment is an incomplete thought which lacks a subject, a verb, or
both. A complete sentence may be as short as “He ran,” or even “Go.” (You” is
understood to be the subject in this sentence.) An example of a fragment is the
following: Learning from our mistakes. Another example is the following: From our
mistakes. Note: However, there are two examples when students may use fragments
without penalty: (1) the title of an essay and in (2) dialogue (characters speaking to
each other in their own words and if the writer thinks to himself/herself. If so, these
words are in italics.) Why are fragments so bad? Think of reasons for this.
AWKWARD (CONFUSING) SENTENCES) may be avoided using proper punctuation
for longer sentences or by breaking longer sentences down into smaller ones. The
important thing is that sentences must be clear in order to be understood.
TENSE SHIFTS occur when verbs in a sentence move from one tense (time) to another;
that is, from past to present, present to past, and past to future. Usually, tenses need to be
uniform unless a change is justified to show the proper meaning. Example: “I know
(present) that he will be (future) a good lawyer. The word know indicates present time;
the verb phrase will be indicates the person who is spoken about is not yet a lawyer. If
the sentence had been I know that he is a good lawyer, the speaker knows this fact to be
true, since the person spoken of is already a lawyer.
DO NOT USE “ETC.” or AND SO FORTH, which means the same thing, when listing
a series of related items or thoughts. Say what you mean clearly. When you use “etc.,”
you assume the reader knows what you mean, which is incorrect. If there are too many
items to list, use the word miscellaneous or other similar items. DO NOT USE …
EITHER AT THE END OF A SENTENCE, which indicates and so on. You may,
however, use … to indicate to indicate your words have been interrupted by someone else
or there is a pause in your thinking process.
The pound (#) symbol indicates there is a spacing error. Insert two spaces after a period
(.) or colon (:), and one after a comma (,). Remember that compound words are two
words written together (someone); others are written as two separate words (high school).
Some words are used as a compound, but there are also written as two separate words,
depending on sentence context; if in doubt, look it up in a dictionary. Example 1:
Anyone can volunteer to solve the problem (one word). Example 2: Any one of the
students will qualify as a contestant in the race (two words). A short quiz is as follows:
is the word all right one or two words? Is high school one or two words?
PARAGRAPHING: Separate different ideas into paragraphs headed by a topic sentence.
The way to show a change in thought is to indent. To determine the spacing, press the
tab bar once. Note: Make sure all paragraph indentions align properly.
DO NOT USE—A LOT or LOTS (unless it is quoted.) These are too informal. Use
“many,” “much,” or “often.” Example: How can this be written formally to avoid the
use of a lot of lots?
DO NOT USE ABBREVIATIONS FOR YOUR CONVENIENCE. Write out all
words, unless they are standard abbreviations; for instance, Mr., Mrs., Dr., etc. The
words a.m. do not have a space after them unless they are followed by another word in
the sentence. Do not shorten a word, such as Bldg. (for building) or TX (for Texas.)
DO NOT USE ACRONYMS: N.A.S.A. must be written out as National Aeronautics
and Space Administration. After it has been identified, you can use NASA in parenthesis
to speak about this agency.
Use the possessive form, such as “It is a woman’s right to change her mind.” An ‘s is a
singular indicates singular possession; s’ indicates plural possession, as the boys’ club.
Do not confuse a POSSESSIVE with a CONTRACTION. For example, “The cat hurt
its paw. (possessive—no apostrophe); “That’s your opinion, not mine.” (contraction
meaning that is).
Nouns that end in an s are plural (horses); verbs that end in an s are singular (walks).
Use correct VERB TENSES: Incorrect: He was driving down the street when a dog
runs in front of his car.
Subject/Verb & Pronoun/Antecedent Agreement example: Do not say, “When a
person makes a mistake, THEY should apologize. You cannot use a singular subject
with a plural pronoun. Note: An antecedent is the noun to which a pronoun refers.
What are two ways to fix the error in the above-mentioned sentence?
Noun/Verb Agreement: They WANTS/WANT to go for a walk in the park with their
friends.
Eliminate WOULD as in “would go,” as in “We would go every morning.” Instead, say,
“We went every morning.”
CANNOT is spelled as one word, not two.
Do not say, “Basically, …” Do not say, “In conclusion, … ”Do not say, “24/7,”
Basically is a filler word. In conclusion is not an original way to end an essay. The
expression 24/7 can only be used in dialogue, not in text. What is a formal way to say
this?
Do not say, “I was like, angry, you know, … at him” unless it is used in dialogue. The
word like should not be stuck in every sentence. It means a fondness for or a similarity to
someone.
Feel vs. Think or Believe: The word “feel” must be followed by a feeling or emotion. “I
feel happy, happy, sad, ….” WRONG: “She feels that she can do well there.”
CORRECT: “She thinks, (believes,) (suspects) that she can do well there.”
Avoid TRITE (OVERUSED) and SLANG WORDING:
Do not say, “as white as a sheet.” (trite) Do not say, “I’m in a pickle.” (slang).
Furthermore, do not use “OK” or “Okay” unless it is in dialogue. What about using the
word jam in this way: I was in a jam. Is this correct within the text of a paper if it isn’t
dialogue?
Do not say, “WERE” when you mean “WHERE.” Make the distinctions between
homonyms, such as “there, “their,” and “they’re.”
Be careful when using homonyms like to, two, too. These are words that sound alike, are
spelled differently, and have different meanings in a sentence. How do you know which
one to use?
Do not say, In this essay, I will …” This is telling, not showing. What else is wrong with
beginning like this? Is this showing o telling?
MANUSCRIPT FORMAT AND SUBMITTING YOUR ESSAY
Margins and type font: Use a one-inch margin all the way around the paper and block
lettering, such as Times Roman, 12 font.
Spacing: Double space (one blank line between each sentence) the entire document.
Title: Must be an original title, clever, and not in quotes or underlined.
Footer format: Include footers on each page in an essay. On left hand lower bottom,
type your last name followed by your first name (line 1), then type Prof Horn (line 2),
and finally, the time and days of your class (line 3). The page number should align with
the third line that gives the time and date of your class in the lower right hand corner of
the page. If set up properly, all this information will appear on all pages of your
document.
Quality of typing: No smudges, light printing, “penning in,” coffee stains, pet hair or
other examples of inferior quality are acceptable in a Final Draft.
Contents in folder: The two-pocket folder in the color of your choice should have three
lines in the upper right hand corner on the folder to read as follows:
Last Name, First Name
ENGL 1301
Prof. Horn
Note: Do not staple any papers together in your folder. Clip them together with a paper
clip. Also, do NOT place anything else other than your essay in your folder such as
space paper, the syllabus, or quizzes. These belong in another folder for you to keep until
the end of the semester in case there is a question about a grade.
Rewrites: If you paper is substandard, I will check the box that says “Does not meet the
minimum requirements,” return it to you with your errors, and you will be allowed to fix
them and resubmit the paper. You should return your essay as soon as possible,
hopefully by the next class period. However, if the paper has to be rewritten because it
was approached incorrectly, it will take you longer, but that it all right. Do NOT use
another profile sheet; use the one I marked on. I will grade your essay in another ink
color.
Corrections: To understand my proofreader’s marks on your essay, FIRST refer to the
Proofreader’s Marks on the web page under the Writing link. If you still don’t
understand what to do to correct your errors, you may then approach me, and I will
discuss them with you.