Cindy

Cindy is a language-loving American writer for the Engram blog. Her love for languages, including her first language English, is what drives her when she writes and translates for a living.

On vs. In

On and in are two of the most common prepositions in the English language. But how do you know when to you one or the other? Are you in the train or on the train? You use the preposition in when you are inside a space or object, and you

Do Not vs. Does Not

Who don't know where India is? → Who doesn't know where India is? In the example above, using doesn't (does not) is correct.

Has Not vs. Have Not

They has not been going to class these days. → They have not been going to class these days. Has or have? This is similar to the is vs. are dispute (refer to the article Is vs. Are). Here is a simple rule to follow: A has/have B. * If A

Would vs. Will

Would is the past tense of will. The sentence above should be in all present tense as implied by the present tense has. If sentence used had instead of has, then using would would be correct.

Is vs. Are

Is follows singular nouns while are comes after plural nouns. Here is an example. * Jerome’s reports is not good. → Jerome’s reports are not good. In the example above, reports is plural (report is the singular version of the word), so the appropriate verb for the sentence would be

Though vs. Although

Although was once two words: all though. So the root meaning of the though and although are the same, but although is a bit more formal than though. Generally native speakers of English would prefer to use although in writing and though when speaking casually.

"Not Good Person" or "Not a Good Person"

“not good person” or “not a good person” If you guessed “not a good person,” then you are correct.

Emailing Your Professor or Teacher for a Letter of Recommendation

That awkward moment when you have to ask a professor or teacher for a letter of recommendation that makes you sound like the best candidate there is for college admission, graduate school, or an academic job.

"He Went the Other Way" or "He Went to the Other Way"

“He went the other way” or “He went to the other way” Here, a preposition is not necessary with the word way in this situation. Way is a general direction or method, not a specific location or destination. Therefore, you do not need the preposition to in this sentence.