English Grammar – Crack the Versus Game – Tips

CRACK THIS VERSUS GAME OF GRAMMAR

Since the times immemorial English has been referred to as the Funny Language especially by the Indians because of so many different reasons like peculiar use of tenses, homophones, ambiguous idioms, and a lot more. Until now there have beenseveral confusions about English Grammar that we encounter but we ignore them by simply using them whichever way we like. So, here are some examples of commonly used words whose usage is confused with another similarly applied word. We hope after reading this article you will be able to resolve your doubts and then use accurate grammar.

1. Like V/s such as

A common mistake that we tend to make is use such as and like as a substitute for another, or mostly use like when such as should be applied in a sentence. However the actual rule that we are not aware of behind the application of these two words is like excludes; such as includes. One must use such as when giving examples of something, and like when one has to express similarity. Lets make it more clear with few examples: Celebrities like Amitabh Bachchan and Deepika Padukone are used to being clicked. Celebrities, such as Amitabh Bachchan and Deepika Padukone, are used to being clicked. In the first sentence, were talking about any celebrity who is a part of Bollywood with BIG B and Deepika; not necessarily these two specific stars just ones like them. In the second sentence, were naming both of them as specific examples of actors who are used to being clicked because that is how their profession of being on celluloid has made them.

2. As V/S since

Its been years since I last rode a cycle, as I moved to the city. This is an incorrect application of the word As. This is another innocent grammatical error we tend to commit by using as and since interchangeably. The simple rule behind the usage of these two words is -as is causal; , think of since as being associated to time. A grammatically correct example would be: Its been years since Ive ridden a cycle. I havent been able to ride a cycle as it is not a trend in the city.

3. -ed V/S -nt endings

Many speakers are in a dilemma whether a word should end in -ed or -nt: should it be burned or burnt, for example? The rule is that -ed is the past tense form; -nt is the participle form. For instance, she burned theold documents is correct because were talking about an action  the burning taking place in the past. Another example of the participle use of the verb to burn would be burnt ashes . Another example of this rule is learned versus learnt: she learned the poem versus the poem is learnt by her.

4. That V/S which

The case with that and which is that defines; & which informs, or adds extra information. For example: This is the dish that I have cooked for the dinner. This dish, which Tina made, looks better. In the first sentence, that is used to define the dish as being one made by me. The second sentence refers to a different dish that looks better than mine, with a bit of extra information added  which Tina made. To know more such interesting facts about grammar check our Facebook Page or visit our website.

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