168 Essential Skills for Health Careers Success
2. double negatives
Incorrect: She does not dislike no one in her class.
Rule: Double negatives can confuse the meaning of a sentence.
Since not is negative, you cannot use no one in this sentence.
Correct: She does not dislike anyone in her class.
Incorrect: She don’t do nothing right.
Correct: She doesn’t do anything right.
3. gone vs went
Incorrect: I should have went to the lecture.
Rule: Gone should be used with a helping verb.
Correct: I should have gone to the lecture.
Incorrect: I gone to the game.
Rule: Went is used without a helping verb.
Correct: I went to the game.
4. pronoun abuse
Incorrect: Me and my lab partner did a great job on the assignment.
Correction: Rephrase the sentence without one of the subjects.
Does it still make sense? Would you say “Me did a great job on
the assignment”?
Correct: My lab partner and I did a great job on the assignment.
5. its vs it’s
Incorrect: Its going to be hard to study with the beautiful weather
today.
Rule: The contraction it’s is used here because it stands for it is.
Correct: It’s going to be hard to study with the beautiful weather
today.
6. good vs well
Incorrect: You really spell good.
Rule: When an activity is being described, use well. When it is a
condition or a state being described, use good.
Correct: You really spell well.
Another example: Lisa spelled well at the spelling bee; she
looked good on stage wearing her new purple outfi t.
7. anxious vs eager
Incorrect: Jenny was anxious to go to the graduation party in her
honor.
Rule: In this case, Jenny was looking forward to her party but was
not worried or uneasy, as the word anxious suggests.
Correct: Jenny was eager to go to the graduation party in her
honor.
Another example: Jenny is eager to go to medical school after
graduation, but her parents are anxious about the expense.