1. The 10 Most Common ESL Mistakes
Let’s give credit where credit is due: Being English as a Second Language (ESL) student is tough.
You must learn new material in your field of study while also learning another language.
Sometimes, you may sit through classes that you do not fully understand, which can affect your
ESL writing. In addition, the requirement to write papers in a language that is not your first
language (and may even be you’re third or fourth) is daunting. Kudos to all ESL students!
Our editors and proofreaders find that they encounter a number of common ESL mistakes. Clearly,
our editors can’t sit through your classes, but they can certainly help you with your English writing
by showing you how to eliminate common ESL mistakes. The following are the 10 most common
ESL mistakes we’ve encountered in ESL academic writing:
1. Misuse of articles
One of the most common ESL mistakes made in academic writing is the tendency to confuse
indefinite and definite articles. Indefinite articles (“a” or “an”) are used to refer to a noun, the
specific identity of which is unknown. “A” is used for words that begin with a consonant sound and
“an” is used for words that begin with a vowel sound. There is only one definite article in the
English language (“the”); this means you don’t have to worry about listening for vowel sounds.
“The” is used in front of singular or plural nouns and adjectives to refer to something with which
both the writer and reader are familiar. “A duck” refers to a single unspecified duck whereas “the
duck” refers to a specific duck.
2. Transitional phrases
Another one of the most common ESL mistakes we see in academic writing is an over-reliance on
transitional phrases. Often, two logically-related sentences do not need a transitional word to link
them. For example, “The lumberjacks chopped the tree. Consequently, it fell down.” In this
instance, “consequently” is not needed because readers can figure out for themselves that the
tree fell as a consequence of the lumberjacks’ chopping.
3. Watch your adjectives
Adjectives are used to describe nouns and can sometimes be tricky if you are using more than one
to refer to a specific noun. If you are using more than one adjective, they usually follow a specific
order: 1) article, 2) judgment, 3) size, 4) shape, 5) age, 6) color, 7) nationality, and 8) material.
Consider the sentence, “He wants a white new bike.” Does it sound weird? That’s because the
color of the bike comes before the age of the bike. Reverse those two words and the sentence
sounds correct.
4. Wordiness
The tendency to use two or three words when one would do is a common ESL mistake. If we
compare the sentence, “Suzie believed, but could not confirm, that Bill had feelings of affection for

2. her,” to this sentence, “Suzie assumed Bill liked her,” we notice that they communicate the same
meaning, except one uses five words and one uses 14. When writing an essay, it’s important to
avoid wordiness and to be as precise as you can when constructing sentences.
5. Plural possessives
This is not just a common ESL mistake, but one seen in writing from native English speakers as
well. When showing possession of a plural noun, you simply add an apostrophe at the end of the
word (the brothers’ bike). If the noun is singular, add an apostrophe plus the letter “s” at the end
of the word (the cat’s toy).
6. Adverbs
Another one of the most common ESL mistakes relates to adverbs (words that add something to a
verb, such as ran quickly, drove slowly, or slept peacefully). In ESL academic writing, adverbs are
sometimes placed far away from the verbs they modify. When using an adverb, keep it close to
the verb in order to avoid confusion. Never put an adverb in between the word “to” and a verb
(i.e., to quickly run). This results in what is known as a split infinitive and should be avoided in
traditional academic writing.
7. Using a thesaurus
“I was crusading home from work and suddenly my fatigue blew out!” Translation: “I was driving
home from work and suddenly my tire blew out!” A thesaurus is a great tool, but it can become a
problem when homonyms (words that sound and are spelled the same, but have different
meanings) are not understood. This is one of the most common ESL mistakes. Make sure you have
a firm understanding of the definition of a word before you try to find an alternative.
8. Coordinating Conjunctions
When we see a sentence with a lot of coordinating conjunctions (and, but, if, or), we almost
always make that sentence into two, three, or four separate sentences. When you write a
sentence that contains a number of these words, it’s best to review it and see where you can chop
it up. Also, sentences that begin with a coordinating conjunction are often weak sentences that
are made stronger simply by removing the conjunction. Our advice is to use these little words
sparingly to avoid making this common ESL mistake.
9. Which/that
Misusing the terms which and that is a common ESL mistake. “That” is used when the information
being added is essential to the understanding of the sentence. “Which” is used when the
information being added is not essential to the understanding of the sentence? If you use a
“which” statement, be sure to offset it with commas.
10. Don’t Be Afraid To Make Definitive Statements

3. We frequently note the absence of definitive statements in ESL writing. You may think that being
non-committal is a way of maintaining objectivity, or you just may not be confident enough in your
English writing. However, you should not be afraid of making definitive statements. When
definitive statements are made, sentences are typically shorter and the writing becomes clearer
and more concise.
If you notice that you make many of these common ESL mistakes or are still second-guessing your
writing, why not use our English academic editing services to make your academic ESL writing
more clear and effective. If you are looking to improve your understanding of the English
language, check out Grammar Camp and see if grammar training is right for you.
Aprender inglés
Durante el año siempre hay la promesa o el deseo de aprender un idioma como es el
inglés, es decir, cada mes o cada estación del año estamos planificando sobre el cómo,
y la forma en que vamos a actuar cuando ya estemos estudiando, cosa que no difiere
de otro plan que también tenemos en mente, la de viajar, trabajar, emprender un
negocio, pero todo esto está relacionado con el aprendizaje del inglés en estos tiempos
advenedizos de gran importancia para la niñez, adolescente, juventud y la vejez.
En diversas oportunidades las ganas de querer estudiar se convierten en auto-promesas o
ilusiones que en muchas ocasiones resulta difícil de comprender o tratar de entender lo que
una persona decide mentalmente prometerse y no lo cumple, entonces, estamos frente a la
promesa clásica, “ahora sí, definitivamente voy a ponerme a estudiar y aprender el
inglés”. Pero, la respuesta no deja de ser vana o simplemente alentadora en forma personal,
este aliciente subjetivo hace que decidamos por elegir varios institutos o centros de
enseñanza de idiomas que son estatales o privadas y sobre los costos ni vale la pena
presupuestar porque eso va por añadidura en el gasto de la familia como diría un vecino que
también entiende sobre idiomas en este mundo globalizado y enteramente digitalizado.
Que voy a lograr con estudiar y aprender el idioma inglés, pues, si usted no tiene un
objetivo definido y alcanzable, puede resultar un fracaso por la falta de un aliciente,
de una motivación clara. Una forma de aprender inglés y conseguir una formación
acreditada en idiomas que podamos añadir a nuestro curriculum es fijándonos y
ubicándonos en los títulos que en el marco de referencia europea otorgan los institutos
que vamos a estudiar el inglés, y son los siguientes:

4. YLE (English for Young Learners)
KET (Key English Test)
PET (Preliminary English Test)
FCE (First Certificate in English)
CAE (Certificate in Advanced English)
CPE (Certificate in Proficiency English)
Como ven, lo niveles principales son seis, los cuales se pueden asociarse con los niveles
Básicos (YLE y KET),Medio (PET y FCE),Avanzado (CAE y CPE).Entonces les deseo
suerte y éxitos a todos los que han decidido tal promesa que seguro estoy en un tiempo tan
cercano les estaremos viendo en trabajos nuevos y por su puesto ganando un buen estímulo
económico sobre todo a los jóvenes y adolescentes.