APPENDIX A
20 Common Writing Errors to Avoid
1.It’s and its. It’s always is the contraction for it is. Its is never the possessive of it.
It’s hot today.
The cat chased its tail.
2.Wrong word use. Using words incorrectly (affect and effect, compliment and complement, they’re and their) occurs when words that may sound similar do not mean what the writer thinks. The only fix is to learn the meaning and usage of words.
Affect = verb. Interest rates affect home ownership.
Effect = noun. The effect interest rates have on home ownership is well documented.
Other potential word use confusions include the following:
accept/except
amount/number
emigrate/immigrate
lose/loose
two/too/to
then/than
women/woman
3.Starting sentence with a number. Never start ...
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