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        Top Ten Mistakes College Writers Make
 

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How to Properly Place Modifiers

Another important aspect of style is how to correctly use a modifier. This article focuses on how to improve the usage of a modifier according to the University of Wisconsin (Twelve common errors, 2013).

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How to Use a Modifier

A modifier is a word that changes the meaning of another word. In the next examples, the modifiers have been italicized while the words they change have been underlined.  

• "The ball is red."
• "He ran quickly."
• "The crooked stairs are difficult to climb."
• "To boldly go where no man has gone before."

What Happens When We Misuse a Modifier 

• A modifier becomes misplaced
• A modifier becomes a dangling modifier

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Misplaced Modifiers

A misplaced modifier is a modifier that creates confusion in a sentence. Misplaced modifiers are found near multiple nouns or any two clauses. In the following examples, the misplaced modifiers have been italicized while the words they modify are underlined. 

Notice how the misplaced modifiers create confusion in the sentences.

• "People who laugh rarely are sad."
• Are the people who laugh rarely sad, or do they laugh rarely?
• "She saw a puppy and a kitten on the way to the store."
• Did she see a puppy and a kitten going to the store, or did she see the puppy and the kitten as she herself was on her way to the store?

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How to Fix a Misplaced Modifier

To fix a misplaced modifier, move the modifier next to the word or clause it modifies. Notice in the changed above examples, the modified words are closer to their modifiers. 

• "People who rarely laugh are sad."
• "On the way to the store, she saw a puppy and a kitten."

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Dangling Modifiers

A dangling modifier is similar to a misplaced modify, but slightly different. In a dangling modifier, the modifier is present, but the word that it modifies is absent. In the next examples, the modifiers have been italicized. 

Notice how the modifiers lack a word to modify.

• "Walking down the street, the weather was fine."
• Who walked down the street?
• "Bored of the long trip, John's excitement rose as he spotted a rest house."
• John's excitement is incapable of being bored

How to Fix Dangling Modifiers

To fix a dangling modifier, include the missing modified word into the clause that contains the modifier. Using the earlier examples, the modifiers have been italicized, while the newly included modified words are underlined.

• "Walking down the street, I saw the weather was fine."
• "John felt bored of the long trip, but his excitement rose as he spotted a rest house."

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Review

Tips on How to Spot Misplaced/Dangling Modifiers

• Use your eyes! Many grammar checkers often miss a misplaced modifier or a dangling modifier

1. Identify the words that are being modified and the words that modify the aforementioned words
2. Are the modifiers and modified words close together? If not, check to see if they fit the criteria for a misplaced/dangling modifier
3. Rewrite the sentence so that the modifiers and modified words are as close together as possible

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Avoid Helping Verbs and Modal Verbs

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List of Helping Verbs and Modal Verbs

Helping Verbs

• Will, shall, may, might, can, could, must, ought to, should, would, used to, and need

Modal Verbs

• Can, could, may, might, must, ought to, shall, should, will, would

How to Write Clearer and More Efficiently

Now that a college student knows how to fix most of their grammar issues, it is time to move on to writing style tips. The focus of this article will be on how to improve the flow of a written work, according to the advice provided by the Senior Editors of Yahoo! (Barr, C., & Senior Editors of Yahoo!, 2010)

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How to Use Determiners

A determiner is a word that comes in front of a noun. 

• "The cat is sleeping."
• "A giant bird just flew past my head."
• "Dude, did you eat my pizza?"
• "Both blinds were drawn fully open to let the moonlight seep inside the room."

Why Using Determiners Improves Your Writing

• Reduces the grade level of your writing
• Makes it easier for non-native English speakers to translate the written work

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How to Untangle Messy Sentences

1. Check for Excessive Gerunds

• "Slipping the round peg into the electrical configuration, making sure that it fits properly, adjusting it for proper fitting." 

    2.    Remove Unnecessary Modal Verbs

• "Can you if you would, the shortest route to Kansas is by bus."

    3.    Avoid Passive Sentences

• "I have been running since I was at least six years old."
• This rule never applies if you follow an old/new pattern (see below)

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Follow an Old/New Pattern

An old/new pattern occurs when you start the next sentence of a paragraph with a subject that has been introduced in a previous sentence.

"The dog ate from its bowl. The bowl was very clean. Cleanliness is important for dog owners. Dog owners must make sure that their dogs avoid becoming sick."

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Review

How to Make Your Writing Clearer

• Use Determiners
• The, a/an, both, many, some, few, etc.,
• Untangle your sentences
• Check for gerunds
• They are verbs that end with -ing, running, hitting, swinging, etc.,
• Check for modal verbs
• Can, could, would, shall, might, etc.,
• Avoid passive sentences
• Instead of "she has been running until she became tired," use "she ran until she was completely tired."
• Follow the old/new pattern
• Remember that it is okay to use a passive sentence if a new subject has been introduced in a previous sentence

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Commonly Confused Words

Now that we have finished the most common mistakes college students make in terms of commas, it is important to mention that many college students make mistakes in terms of word choice. 7.8% of students make a mistake in regards to word choice, according to a 1988 study (Connors, R. J., & Lunsford, A. A., 1988).

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Here is a list of the commonly confused words (Lunsford, A., 2008).

A lot and alot

• A lot is a phrase that describes the group of a noun
• "A lot of ducks gathered at the pond."
• Alot is a word that is mistakenly used in place of "a lot"
• "You will never find the word 'alot' in any dictionary."

Accept and except

• Accept is a word that describes when a person gives a sense of permission
• "I will accept the terms of the agreement."
• Except is a word that describes when an object has been excluded
• "I like all dogs, except for a Weimaraner."

Affect and effect

• Affect is a word, as a verb only, and describes influence
• "The wind will affect the rain patterns."
• Effect is a word, as a noun only, and describes influence
• "The effect of the tornado caused houses to be ruined."

All ready and already

• All ready is a phrase that describes a preparation
• "The meal was all ready to eat."
• Already is a word, as an adverb only, that describes a quality of readiness
• "I was already hungry by the time I sat down to eat." 

Altogether and all together

• Altogether is a word, as an adverb only, that describes the entire status of an object
• "The painting was altogether beautiful in an eerie way."
• All together is a phrase that describes the state of togetherness
• "All together, we looked like a group of misfits and nerds."

Among and between

• Among is a word that describes when an object has been found near another object
• "The grass looked clean among the piles of raked leaves."
• Between is a word that describes when an object has been stuck against another object
• "I found this book between the history and fantasy sections of the library."

Apart and a part

• Apart is a word that describes the state of being apart
• "Apart from the yellow frame, the picture looked gorgeous."
• A part is a phrase that describes a single noun as an individual
• "A part of me wanted to run away from the screaming crowd."

Cite, sight, and site

• Cite is a word, only as a verb, that describes a quote on a document
• "Never forget to cite your sources on a research project."
• Sight is a word, only as a noun, that describes the quality of vision
• "The sight of the nation's flag inspired the patriots."
• Site is a word, only a noun, that describes a specific place with a specific boundary
• "The construction site had been vacant for some time."

Complement and compliment

• Complement is a word that describes a quality that creates a beneficial influence between any two objects
• "Our personalities complement one another."
• Compliment is a word that describes an act that gives praise
• "I will give a compliment when it is needed to keep the workers happy."

Farther and further

• Farther is a word that describes a specific distance
• "The farther I go, the more I realize I have yet to accomplish."
• Further is a word that describes an uncertain distance 
• "Any further and I would have perished in the dry desert of the Sahara."

It's and its

• It's is a shorthand for the phrase "it is"
• "It's going to be a long day."
• Its is the possessive pronoun of the pronoun "it"
• "The monster ate its bones and belched loudly."

Lay and lie

• Lay is a word, unattached to a preposition, that describes the act of laying 
• "I will lay in the grass to rest."
• Lie is a word, always attached to a preposition, that describes the act of laying 
• "I need to lie down for a nap."

Lose and loose

• Lose is a word that describes the act of a loss
• "I will lose the game at this rate."
• Loose is a word that describes the state of non-togetherness
• "The feathers fit like a loose clump in my hand."

Than, their, and they're

• Than is a word that uses a comparison with another object
• "I will be prettier than her when we compete at the dance."
• Their is a word that describes the possession of an object by a group
• "That rock is their diving board to the waterfall."
• They're is a shorthand for the phrase "they are"
• "They're coming to greet us soon, be ready."

Then and than

• Then is a word that describes a later period in time
• "I ate a cheese dog and then took a nap."
• Than is a word that uses a comparison with another object
• "I will be prettier than her when we compete at the dance."

Too, two, and to

• Too is a word that describes an extremeness or a degree 
• "I am too smart for my own good."
• Two is a word that describes the presence of two objects
• "There are two eyes on a human's face."
• To is a word that describes the act of being toward
• "I went to the football game."

Who and whom

• Who is a word, as a subject only, that describes an unknown noun
• "Who ate my pizza?"
• Whom is a word, as an object only, that describes an unknown noun
• "To whom it may concern, I was about to eat that pizza."

Who, which, and that

• Who is a word, as a subject only, that describes an unknown noun
• "Who ate my pizza?"
• Which is a word that takes the place of a noun in question
• "Which of you ate my pizza?"
• That is a word that describes a reference to a group or an individual object
• "That perfect pizza was what I have been wanting this whole time."

You're and your

• You're is a shorthand for the phrase "you are"
• "You're going to eat your vegetables young lady."
• Your is a word that describes a possessive object for the pronoun "you"
• "I accidentally ate your pizza, I am sorry."

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Review

Tips on How to Prevent the Use of a Wrong Word

• Rely on your eyes, many of the similar sounding words in the English language will pass through a spelling checker or a grammar checker
• Read backwards and zoom-in closely to see the text from another fresh perspective
• Consult an online dictionary if in doubt on a word's usage
• First type "define:X" into the Google search engine
• Replace X with the word you need to search quickly
• Next, check the category of the word
• Ask yourself if the word fit as a noun, adverb, preposition, verb, or adjective

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A Comma Splice

This article stays with the theme of the common errors a college student makes when they use a comma. A comma splice is such a common error. 5.5% of college students will neglect to put a comma between two independent clauses (Connors, R. J., & Lunsford, A. A., 1988). 

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Independent Clauses

To fix a comma splice, you must be able to identify independent clauses. Having been previously mentioned on this blog, a lonely clause is a clause unable to be a complete sentence. An independent clause is a clause that is the opposite, however, and can be a complete sentence. 

In these next two examples, the lonely clauses are underlined and the independent clauses are italicized. Notice how the lonely clauses are unable to be a complete sentence, while the independent clauses can be a complete sentence. 

• “We will throw you a party, because you want to take time off.”
• “If we want to win, we will work harder.”

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A Comma Splice

A comma splice happens when a comma joins two independent clauses. This is incorrect because in this case the comma functions as a semicolon (Williams, E. H., 2013). A semicolon joins two independent clauses. 

Here are two examples of a comma splice. Notice how the parts of the sentence between the commas function each as a complete sentence. 

• “The dog ate its meal, it looked up and wagged its tail.”
• “Twenty sets of plates were laid on the table, every plate had its own unique design.”

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Review

How to Fix Comma Splices

• Rewrite the independent clauses so that each have their own sentence
• Rewrite the sentence so that a semicolon replaces the comma
• Rewrite the sentence and add a joining word from this list after the comma
• And, but, or, yet, for, nor, so
• “The dog ate its meal, so it looked up and wagged its tail.”
• After, although, because, before, if, since, though, unless, until, when, where, while
• “Twenty sets of plates were laid on the table, since every plate had its own unique design.”

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Parenthetical Commas

Many college writers forget to put a parenthetical comma in their sentences. 6.5% of college writers will neglect to put a parenthetical comma in their sentences. This error is the sixth most common writing mistake among all college students (Connors, R. J., & Lunsford, A. A., 1988). 

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Parenthetical Commas

A parenthetical comma shows two ideas in a sentence, shows a contrast in a sentence, or shows a moderate/heavy pause in a sentence. A second idea or a word that creates contrast or a pause is put between the two commas in a sentence. These two commas are called the parenthetical commas (Kahn, J., 2013).  

Here are four examples of a correct parenthetical comma use. Notice how the two ideas show themselves in the examples, or show a contrast or a moderate/heavy pause. 

• “The rain, while pleasantly mild, made the air humid.”
• “My cat, Twitchy, loves catnip.”
• “My fiancé showed up late to our wedding, however, I forgave him.”
• “The cat crouched by the hole, meanwhile, the mouse was busy helping itself to some cheese.”

Let’s break the four examples down further.

“The rain, while pleasantly mild, made the air humid.” 

• The first idea is that the rain made the air humid
• The second idea is that the rain is pleasantly mild

“My cat, Twitchy, loves catnip.”

• The first idea is that my cat loves catnip
• The second idea is that my cat is Twitchy

“My husband showed up late to our wedding, however, I forgave him.”

• The first idea is that the husband showed up late
• The second idea is that the implied wife forgave her husband
• The “however” between the two parenthetical commas shows the contrast between the first and the second idea

“The cat crouched by the hole, meanwhile, the mouse was busy helping itself to some cheese.”

• The first idea is that the cat crouched by the hole
• The second idea is that the mouse was helping itself to some cheese
• The “meanwhile” between the two parenthetical commas shows the heavy pause between the first and the second idea

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Review

When to Use Parenthetical Commas

• To show in a sentence there are two ideas present
• To show a moderate or a heavy pause
• To show a contrast of two ideas
• To show a sentence that starts with a main subject and follows with any of these words
• Which
• “The snake, which had been curled up sleeping, hissed and bared its fangs.”
• When
• “The earthquake, when it had occurred, destroyed several buildings.”
• Where
• “The statue, where it had been placed, drew attention from tourists.”
• Being
• “The girl, being short, had difficulty reaching the top shelf."

When to Avoid the Use of Parenthetical Commas

• There is a presence of more than two ideas in the sentence
• There is a slight pause
• There is a long phrase in the second idea that works better as a standalone sentence
• There is a sentence that starts with a main subject and follows with the word “who”
• “The man who was drunk crashed into a tree.”

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