The following English words and phrases are commonly misused by Chinese learners of English.
This page is a work in progress. If one of the words has no explanation, only examples, look up that word in an English-English online dictionary, and see if you can understand how the word is properly used. Pay particular attention to the sample sentences showing its usage.
There are many good dictionaries, but I particularly like Cambridge Dictionary because it shows many sample sentences.
Level 1: Basic Errors
These are basic, frequently used words that Chinese learners of English will often misuse in a way that is very obvious and sometimes quite confusing for readers or listeners. Many of these are grammar errors; all will strike native speakers as obviously “wrong.” For students just graduated from Chinese high schools I recommend reviewing these first to make sure you’re using them correctly.
“ever”
“locates in”
“open”
“play”
“vocation”
Level 2: Common words often misused
These are words used quite frequently both in writing and speech, which Chinese learners of English often misuse in a way that is subtle but consistent. A native speaker, reading or hearing these errors, might not consciously identify it as “wrong,” but they might get an unconscious feeling that something is “weird” or “unnatural,” and might slightly misunderstand the message as well.
Many of these errors reflect the learner’s underlying mental concept of a corresponding word in Chinese—a word that the dictionary tells you means “the same thing” but actual has subtle differences in meaning and usage.
“communicate” and “communication”
“fail to”
“get rid of”
Level 3: Culture-specific Vocabulary
There are two categories of words in this list: 1) words that Chinese learners of English will often use to refer to concepts very specific to China, but which have no easy equivalent in English; or 2) words that Chinese learners of English might use in a way that comes across as slightly strange, off-putting, or impolite, because they have very specific connotations within the cultures and speech patterns of people from the Anglo-American world.
“Chinese” and “the Chinese” (as noun)
“hometown”
Level 4: “verbal Flourishes”
These are words that Chinese learners of English will often misuse when they’re striving to express something in a distinctive way, to impress with “advanced vocabulary” or simply when looking for a synonym for a common word.
(more to be added later)
Appendix: Concepts
These are explanations of some basic concepts in English expression — some grammatical, some cultural — that may help you avoid making particular kinds of errors.
Topic: Countable vs. Uncountable Nouns
Topic: Explaining where you’re from
Topic: Informality (“a lot,” “lots of,” “really,” “weird,” “it’s,” etc.)
Topic: Periods of time in schooling (“in my high school,” “my middle school life,” etc.)
Topic: Reporting Verbs (“says,” “writes,” “argues,” “points outs,” “explains,” etc.)
Topic: Using Chinese words and phrases in English writing
Topic: Relative pronouns linking clauses