Grammar: More 'mistakes' native English speakers make - BBC English Masterclass

Hi guys. Dan here for BBC Learning English.

In this Masterclass, we'll be taking a look at three grammar mistakes that native speakers commonly make.

Now, as everybody knows, native speakers of

English speak English exactly the way that it's written in grammar books. We never, ever

make mistakes... and if you believe that, you'll believe anything. Native speakers make

mistakes. It's normal. Now, before we continue, it's important to

understand that that these 'mistakes' are only 'mistakes' according to the standard

rules of English, which don't allow for regional variation, personal choice or differences

in formality. So take everything that we say with a pinch of salt. Are you ready? Here we go.

A: Did you see the UEFA final? B: Yeah! It was quite a good match, innit?

Now it's quite common these days to hear native speakers use 'innit' as an auxilliary verb

at the end of a question tag. 'innit' is a corrupted form of 'isn't it' and shouldn't

be used this way. Question tags are formed from auxilliary verbs which are taken from

the main tense of the main verb. In this case, because the sentence is in the past

tense using 'be', your question tag should be 'was'. And because the sentence is affirmative,

the question tag should be negative. Not 'innit', but 'wasn't it'. No!

A: Look over their! They're dog has just stolen

that woman's shopping. B: Ha! There going to be so angry when they

catch it. Now guys, even though this is a relatively

simple problem, it's so common that people make mistakes. It's a written problem not

a spoken one because these three words are pronounced exactly the same. But don't confuse

them when you write them down, OK? 'There' (t-h-e-r-e) is an adverb which shows position

of something. 'Their' (t-h-e-i-r) is a possessive adjective that shows ownership. And 'they're'

(t-h-e-y'r-e) is a contracted form of 'they are'. Be careful.

A: Do you have the item what I ordered yesterday?

B: I don't have what you ordered, but I have something which you'll love!

Now guys, 'what' is a very useful word and it can be used to make relative clauses. However,

it's unlike the other relative pronouns: who, which or that. These three join with a noun

and are followed by a relative clause. 'What' actually means 'the thing which'. It is the

relative pronoun and the noun combined. So, if your sentence already has a noun, you need

to use 'who', 'which' or 'that'. Have a look here.

Now, remember guys, spoken communication is often more informal and more relaxed than

written communication and it's far more important to be understood than to stick rigidly to

the grammar rules. Remember that no one, but no one is perfect - except me! See you next time.