Download ESL 87 Patterns of Error Chart Pierce College Use this chart to keep

ESL 87
Patterns of Error Chart
Pierce College
Use this chart to keep track of the types of errors you make in your writing. Use tally marks to show the amount of errors you have
of each type. Fill out the column that corresponds to the writing sample that you are revising. At the end of the semester, you will
know more about your weak points in writing.
Error Type
Sentence Structure
OR Word Missing
Word Order
Word Choice
Word Form
Article
Plural/Singular
S/V Agreement
Verb Form
 Modals
 Passives
 Perfects
 Simples
 Progressives
Verb Tense
Adjective Clauses
Noun Clauses
Gerunds and
Infinitives
Capitalization
Spelling
Pronouns
Apostrophes
Question Mark
Fragment
RO, CS
Comma
???
1
2
3
4
5
ESL 87
Patterns of Error Chart
Pierce College
SS: the structure of your entire sentence does not follow the proper Subj. + Verb + Obj or you have combined sentences
incorrectly, such as in “Even though I like grammar, but it is hard for me to learn.” It should be “Even though I like grammar, it
is hard for me to learn.”
WO: Word Order- The order of words is incorrect. For example, “Why you are yelling?” should be “Why are you yelling?”
WC: Word Choice- The wrong synonym for a word or an awkward word was used. For example, “cheap” was used instead of
“frugal” to describe someone who likes to save money.
WF: Word Form- The wrong form of the word was used. “My mother is very intelligence,” is incorrect because the wrong form
of the word was used. It should be the adjective form, which is “intelligent.”
ART: Article- Either it is missing or incorrectly used. “She bought new cell phone” should be “She bought a new cell phone.”
(These will be counted the same as Sing/PL errors.)
Sing/PL: Singular or Plural- “I love English homeworks” should be “I love English homework”
(These will be counted the same as articles.)
S/V: Subject/Verb Agreement- Incorrect subject and verb agreement, such as “They is coming.” The correct form is “They are
coming.”
VF: Verb Form- The wrong form of the verb was used. “I have eating a lot last week.” This sentence is incorrect because the
verb form should be “eaten” since that is the past participle of the verb “eat.”

Modals- You have a mistake with modals. For example, you wrote, “She can studies” instead of “She can study.” You
need the base form after a modal. You need to review modals.

Passives- You made a mistake with passive voice. For example, you wrote “A lot of things have been say to me.”
Instead you should write, “A lot of things have been said to me.” You need the past participle after a form of “be” to
use passive voice. You need to review passive forms.

Perfects- You made a mistake with a perfect form. For example, you wrote, “I learned this since I was a child,” but you
should have written, “I have learned this since I was a child.” You need to review perfect forms.

Simples- You made a mistake with the simple form of a verb. For example, you wrote, “I am studying every day,” but
you should write, “I study every day” because it is a habit. You need to review simple present, past, and future forms.

Progressives= You made a mistake with a progressive form. For example, you wrote, “She studying now” instesad of
“She is studying now.” You need to use a form of “be” and a verb + ing for a progressive forms. You need to review
present, past, and future progressive forms.
VT: Verb Tense- The wrong verb tense was used. For example, simple present, simple past, simple future, etc. all relate to verb
tense. “I’m buy milk at the store yesterday.” This sentence is incorrect because the verb should be in the past tense form.
Adj. CL: Adjective Clauses- You made a mistake with an adjective clause. For example, you wrote, “I know a boy who he is very
nice,” but you should write, “I know a boy who is nice.” You need to review adjective clauses.
Noun CL: Noun Clauses- You made a mistake with a noun clause. For example, you wrote, “I know how can she succeed,” but
you should write, “I know how she can succeed.” You have to use a subject before a verb in a noun clause even if you use a
question word. You need to review noun clauses.
ESL 87
Patterns of Error Chart
Pierce College
G: Gerund- You made a mistake with a gerund. For example, you wrote, “ I suggest to study hard,” but you should write, “I
suggest studying hard.” Gerunds can be the subject of a sentence and the object of prepositions and only some verbs. You
need to review how to use gerunds.
INF: Infinitive- You made a mistake with an infinitive form. For example, you wrote, “I study for learning,” but you should write,
“I study to learn.” You need to use an infinitive to show purpose and after some verbs, adjectives, nouns, and adverbs.
CAP: Capitals- You are missing a capital letter or used one incorrectly.
SP: Spelling- A word is misspelled; for example, “piza” should be “pizza.”
PRO: Pronoun-Incorrect pronoun used. “Him and I are friends” should be “He and I are friends.” Or this might mean that there
is an error with pronoun agreement. For example, “Everyone put their keys on the table” should be “Everyone put his or her
keys on the table.”
AP: Apostrophe- An apostrophe to show a contraction or possession was used incorrectly or is missing.
QM: You used a question mark inappropriately or need one.
Frag: Fragment- An incomplete sentence, such as “because my dog ate my homework” was used to function as a complete
sentence. This sentence needs another clause to make it complete, such as “I can’t turn in my homework because my dog at
it.”
RO: Run-On sentence- Two incomplete sentences were joined without punctuation or a conjunction (FANBOY), such as, “It is
nearly five we cannot reach town before dark.” This sentence should be, “It is nearly five o’clock. We cannot reach town before
dark” or “It is nearly five o’clock, and we cannot reach town before dark” or “It is nearly five o’clock; we cannot reach town
before dark.”
CS: Comma Splice- A comma was used to separate two independent clauses. A period, semi-colon, or a comma + FANBOYS
should have been used. For example, “I want to buy an Xbox, I can’t because I’m broke” could be, “I want to buy an Xbox, but I
can’t because I’m broke.”
C: Comma- You are missing a comma or have used one and should not have.
???: Not Comprehensible- This sentence is not comprehensible. There seems to be a major sentence structure or word choice
error, and it needs to be completely revised.