The most common mistakes made by non-native speakers are classified into three categories: writing, speaking, and pronunciation.
We Indians may make a variety of mistakes when speaking English, some of the most common include:
- Pronunciation: Non-native English speakers may have difficulty with certain English sounds, such as the “th” sound or the “v” sound, and may substitute them with sounds more common in Indian languages.
- Word stress and intonation: Non-native English speakers may have difficulty with the natural stress and intonation patterns of English, which can affect their ability to be understood.
- Vocabulary: Non-native English speakers may not be familiar with certain words and idioms commonly used in English, which can lead to confusion or misunderstandings.
- Grammar: Non-native English speakers may make grammatical errors such as using the wrong verb tenses, or using subject-verb agreement errors.
- Word order: Non-native English speakers may have difficulty with the word order in English, which is different from the word order in many Indian languages.
- Interference from their mother tongue: Non-native English speakers may use words or structures from their mother tongue while speaking English which might cause confusion or be incorrect.
When writing English, Indian English speakers may make a lot of mistakes, the most common of which are:
- Spelling: Non-native English speakers may have difficulty with certain English spellings, such as words with silent letters or words with multiple spellings.
- Vocabulary: Non-native English speakers may use words or phrases from their native language that do not have an equivalent in English, which can cause confusion or be grammatically incorrect.
- Grammar: Non-native English speakers may make errors in grammar, such as using the wrong verb tenses, subject-verb agreement errors, or using the wrong prepositions.
- Punctuation: Non-native English speakers may have difficulty with the correct usage of punctuation, such as using full stops, commas and capital letters.
- Idiomatic expressions: Non-native English speakers may not be familiar with idiomatic expressions and may use a literal translation from their native language which may not make sense in English.
- Wordiness: Non-native English speakers may be inclined to use more words than necessary to convey the same meaning, which can make the writing less concise and harder to understand.
It’s important to note that these are common mistakes that many non-native speakers make and with practice, effort and the right guidance, these mistakes can be corrected.
Regardless, to improve your English. You must seek professional guidance in order to learn English. Taking an English-language course, whether online or in-person, can provide structure and guidance for your language learning. Under their direction, you will learn how to overcome your speaking and writing difficulties and fears in order to speak English fluently and write in English with confidence.