In this post: Prepositions and verb collocations, the three if-clause patterns, subject-verb agreement with long subjects, and when to use present or past tense, each with sentences I really got wrong.
Grammar Mistakes · 3 parts
- 1. Why 6.5, plurals and articles
- 2. Prepositions, if-clauses and tenses (you are here)
- 3. Comma splices and a final check
✦ In this post
4. Prepositions and verb collocations: where word-for-word translation creeps in
Almost all my preposition mistakes came from translating word for word from Chinese, which is how I ended up writing on the workplace and in this planet. My notes have a whole page of “not X, but Y” pairs, summarised here:
| Correct phrase | What I once wrote | How to remember it |
|---|---|---|
| in the workplace | on the workplace | The workplace is thought of as a space, so use in |
| on this planet | in this planet | You are on the surface of the earth, so use on |
| in the entertainment industry | on entertainment industries | You work in an industry |
| on a regular basis / on a daily basis | on a regular basic, on daily basic | It is basis (a foundation), not basic (an adjective), and it needs a |
| put emphasis on | put emphasis (on missing) | Emphasis is a noun and needs on before its object |
| overemphasize + object (no preposition) | overemphasize on appearance (Task 25) | Emphasize is transitive and takes its object directly |
| search for information | search the functions | search X means to search a place; to look for something, use search for |
| the information in advertisements | information on advertisement | The content is in the advert |
| distract sb from sth | distract sb to | Your attention is pulled away from something |
| major contributors to | major contributors in | contribute to, so the noun also takes to |
| concentrate on / focus on | concentrate in | You focus on something |
| deprive A of B | — | Take B away from A (depriving them of the chance to…) |
| be allocated to studying | be assigned to study | Here to is a preposition, so it is followed by V-ing |
| pay attention to + V-ing | pay attention to study | As above: to is a preposition |
| pose a threat to | post a threat on / pose a threat on | It is pose, not post, and threat takes to |
| benefit from free entrance to museums | free entrance of museums | Entrance to a place |
| the demand for each product | the demand of each product | demand for |
| residents of a number of nations | residents from… | The residents of a place |
| face uncertainty (no with) | face with the uncertainty (Task 23) | Face as a verb takes its object directly; only be faced with has with |
| help sb do sth | help them to find | Not wrong, but help followed directly by the base form is more natural and shorter |
Two more pairs I often mixed up: result in (lead to, followed by the result) vs result from (come from, followed by the cause); and take X into consideration (not put X into consideration).
5. If-clauses: three patterns and where I went wrong
If-clauses are very useful in Task 2 for reasoning such as “if the government did this, then…”. My notes list three common patterns:
| Type | Pattern | Example | When to use it |
|---|---|---|---|
| Real condition (most common) | If + S + present simple, S + will + V | If the government raises taxes on sugary drinks, consumption will probably fall. | For reasoning about the likely results of a policy in Task 2; nine times out of ten, use this |
| Contrary to present fact | If + S + past simple, S + would + V | If I were rich, I would travel around the world. | For situations that are unlikely to happen |
| Contrary to past fact | If + S + had + past participle, S + would have + past participle | If I had studied harder, I would have passed the exam. | For personal examples: “if it hadn’t been for…, I would have…” |
I used the third pattern for personal examples. In an essay about whether government funding should go only to science subjects, I used it to say, roughly, that if the government had not funded all subjects equally at the time, I would have had to give up my dream. The structure was I would have been forced to give up my dream if … had not been …, with the tenses matching on both sides. Here is a model sentence using the same frame:
Model: I would have had to abandon my plan to study abroad if I had not received a government scholarship.
The mistake I actually made in if-clauses: a missing be verb
| What I wrote (✗) | Correction (✓) |
|---|---|
| ✗ If they unable to earn money from visitors (Task 21) | ✓ If they are unable to earn money from visitors |
| ✗ if we willing to try newer or dangerous things | ✓ if we are willing to try new or dangerous things |
| ✗ If workers enable to spend quality holiday | ✓ If workers are able to spend quality holidays |
| ✗ If the government rises the petrol price | ✓ If the government raises the petrol price |
The first two have the same problem: an adjective (unable, willing) cannot act as a verb on its own and needs a be verb in front of it. The third mixes up the verb enable and the adjective able. The fourth confuses rise and raise: rise is intransitive (prices rise by themselves), while raise is transitive (the government raises prices).
6. Subject-verb agreement: forgetting once the subject gets long
In my essays, subject-verb agreement errors appeared most in two situations: when the subject was long, and when the subject was a gerund. The trick is to find the real “head” of the subject by covering up all the modifiers first.
| What I wrote (✗) | The real subject | Correction (✓) |
|---|---|---|
| ✗ Advertisements is beneficial to some extent. (Trial essay 3) | Advertisements (plural) | ✓ Advertisements are beneficial |
| ✗ if a person keep seeing an item’s picture (Trial essay 3) | a person (singular) | ✓ if a person keeps seeing |
| ✗ A wide range of illness, especially mental diseases, are good examples (Task 7) | illness → change to illnesses | ✓ A wide range of illnesses … are good examples |
| ✗ most of the information residents want to know are available (Task 17) | information (uncountable) | ✓ most of the information … is available |
| ✗ taking risks grant people more opportunities | taking risks (gerund = singular) | ✓ taking risks grants |
| ✗ Similarity, doing uncontrollable behaviors in our private life make us… | doing… (gerund = singular) | ✓ Similarly, behaving recklessly in our private lives makes us… |
| ✗ having houses are so important for some Taiwanese people | having houses (gerund = singular) | ✓ owning a house is so important |
| ✗ expenditure likes the salary … and maintenance cost is undoubtedly high (Task 21) | expenses … and maintenance costs (plural) | ✓ expenses such as staff salaries and maintenance costs are high |
Another pair to keep apart: a number of + plural noun + plural verb (many…) and the number of + plural noun + singular verb (how many…). For example: A number of students are…; The number of students is increasing.
Sentences with no verb: worse than an agreement error
Sometimes the problem is not the form of the verb but that the verb is missing altogether, so the sentence reads as if it were unfinished. These errors were especially common in my essays that scored 6 for GRA:
| What I wrote (✗) | Correction (✓) |
|---|---|
| ✗ it is frequently been ignored (Trial essay 3) | ✓ it is frequently ignored / it has frequently been ignored |
| ✗ Those opposed to the usage of driverless vehicles due to the following two reasons. (Task 15) | ✓ Those who oppose driverless vehicles do so for two reasons. |
| ✗ a number of sugary products still be sold in the markets (Task 7) | ✓ a number of sugary products will still be sold |
| ✗ two types of jobs need to paid highly (Task 25) | ✓ two types of jobs need to be paid highly |
| ✗ a city road, which located in the southern part (Task 19) | ✓ a city road, which was located in the south |
| ✗ A hotel is replaced the castle (Task 33) | ✓ A hotel has replaced the castle / The castle has been replaced by a hotel |
7. Tenses: present for arguments, past for events
Tenses in Task 2 are actually quite simple: use the present simple for arguments (general facts and opinions), the present perfect for trends (has risen, has become), and the past simple for specific past events in examples. When I got it wrong, it was usually because I slipped back into the present while giving an example.
| What I wrote (✗) | Correction (✓) | Explanation |
|---|---|---|
| ✗ Taiwanese factories lose the whole market share after Chinese rice has been imported. | ✓ Taiwanese factories lost their market share after Chinese rice was imported. | This describes something that already happened, so both parts take the past simple |
| ✗ most of small and median corporations do have ability to overcome the difficulties when the pandemic happened. (Task 23) | ✓ most small and medium-sized companies did not have the ability to overcome the difficulties when the pandemic hit. | The pandemic is a past event; the original also left out not, which reverses the meaning completely |
| ✗ To put it another way, children lost opportunities to enhance their social skills. | ✓ children lose opportunities to develop their social skills | This is a general argument, so use the present |
| ✗ In 2000, … there are two spaces for fishing boats and marina (Task 33) | ✓ In 2000, … there were two areas for fishing boats and a marina | Past years in a Task 1 map take the past simple |
Be especially careful with Task 1 maps: use the past for the earlier map, and the present or present perfect (has been replaced) for the “now” map. Both of my map essays scored only 6 for GRA, and confused tenses and passives were one of the main reasons.
Continue reading · Part 3 of 3
IELTS Notes in English · Writing Language (post 1 of 4)
Task 1 Structure · Task 2 Structure · Topic Guides · Writing Language · Band Score Samples · Practice Methods · Speaking & Study Tips
✦ Target Your Future
Some days you practise for hours and the score still does not move. I hope these notes remind you that the setbacks are part of the road: every recording you replayed, every essay you rewrote and every sentence you finally dared to say is progress you have already made.
I wrote this down so the next person can take fewer detours. You do not have to follow my method exactly. Find a rhythm that works for you, rest when you need to, and come back for the next small step.
I hope what you take away is more than a number on a score report: a little more confidence in yourself, and the courage to step a bit closer to the world.
— Ting
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