10 Common Grammar Mistakes You May Be Making and How to Avoid Them

In a career where strong writing is a must-have skill, having strong grammar should be like second nature. While many of us are already equipped with these skills, you may find yourself writing sometimes and thinking, “Is it who or whom?” This blog post is here to tell you. These are 10 common mistakes you could be making in your writing and how to avoid them by understanding the difference between similar words. Even if you’re already familiar with these mistakes, it doesn’t hurt to have some review.

1. Who vs. Whom

This is one that is very easy to miss up and many probably aren’t even aware of what their difference is. "Who" is used when referring to the subject of a sentence while "whom" is used as an object of a verb or a preposition.

Ex: Who asked the question? He asked the question.

Ex: Whom should I take to the movies?

The easiest way to differentiate the difference is by placing pronouns in place. If “he” fits in the sentence, it’s who, if “him” fits, it’s whom.

2. Lie vs. Lay

This is another pair of words that are used interchangeably, but there is a difference between them. They are both verbs, but their difference is in their tense. “Lay” is used when you place something down; “lie” is used when the action has been done and it is in the current position of being placed down.

Ex: I lay down on my bed every night.

Ex: I lie in bed until noon.

3. Fewer vs. Less

These words are some you may not recognize you are confusing, but their difference is rather simple. “Fewer” is used for things that can be counted, while “less” is used for things that cannot be counted.

Ex: There are fewer than three slices of bread left.

Ex: There’s even less water in here than yesterday.

4. Then vs. Than These words are probably some of the worst offenders of people’s grammar mistakes. They are very common in today’s time and understanding their difference is important. “Then” is used to show a place in time, while “than” is used when comparing two subjects. Ex: She went to the movies, then she went to dinner. Ex: She would rather go to the movies first than to dinner. 5. To vs. Too Yet another fairly mixed-up set of words. “To” has several meanings, but most commonly it is used in front of a noun or verb that suggests going to something. "Too" is used to suggest a large amount or as a synonym for “also”.

Ex: He is going to the store to buy food. Ex: He’s eating way too much food. 6. Affect vs. Effect Many people probably aren’t aware that there’s a difference between two words, or have probably been too scared to ask; their difference is actually quite simple. “Affect” is used as a verb and shows action, while “effect” is a noun that is the result of a change. Ex: She didn’t know the sun would affect her car. Ex: The sun had a harsh effect on her car. 7. Your vs. You’re These two are constantly used interchangeably despite their simple differences. "Your" is a possessive adjective that is used to describe something belonging to you, while "you’re" is a contraction of the words “you are”.

Ex: Your car is dirty, you should wash it. Ex: You’re very optimistic today. 8. Peek vs. Peak This is another pair of words that could be confused due to their similar spelling. Peak is used when discussing the top or point of something, while peek is used when referring to taking a look. Ex: They’re at the peak of the mountain. Ex: They’re taking a peek at tomorrow’s work. 9. Loose vs Lose These are mixed up easily because of their close spelling; however, they have very big differences. "Loose" is used to show that something is not tight or contained, while "lose" is used as a verb to show the loss of something.

Ex: The pockets are loose, everything is falling out. Ex: It’s a shame they had to lose their spot. 10. Ensure vs Assure While this may not seem like it will be mixed up, it is still easy to misuse them. "Ensure" is used when making something certain and "assure" is used to remove doubt and place confidence.

Ex: I assure you, this mistake won’t happen again. Ex: I will ensure that he makes it to his appointment.