English Grammar: Verb Conjugation

In English grammar, you must follow some very strict verb conjugation rules. There are many common mistakes which most writers make, which could be easily avoided.

English Grammar Error: Using the Past Simple with the Past Perfect Tense

The most common writing errors involve using the incorrect form of a verb in conjugation. Some examples are:

"I have did it."
"It was tore."
"I have went there."
"They have broke it."
"I've ate that."

These verbs require the past participle for the past perfect tense. Corrected, these sentences would read:

"I have done it."
"It was torn."
"I have gone there."
"They have broken it."
"I've eaten there."

These same rules apply in the subjunctive tense.

"I would have done it."
"It would have been torn."
"I would have gone there."
"They would have broken it."
"I would have eaten there."

If in doubt, be sure to check a reference guide for the correct verb conjugation.

English Grammar Error: Conjugating with a Preposition

Many people conjugate verbs by ear. When they hear someone say "could've," they hear "could of." This is incorrect. "Could've" is a casual, spoken contraction of "could have."

English Grammar Error: Psychotic Verbs

In English grammar, writers often use a different verb in the independent clause than in a dependent clause. This is incorrect, since the verb in an dependent clause must be the same as that of the independent clause it is attached to.

For example, "The Ford Tauruses have sold for higher prices than the Escorts are."

This is an error, because the verbs in the two clauses are different. The corrected sentence would read, "The Ford Tauruses have sold for higher prices than the Escorts have." In both segments, the same auxiliary verb (to have) has been used. Sold is implied in this instance.

Here is another example of a problem sentence.

"Driving without a seatbelt is a car looking for an accident to happen."

This is incorrect. In this sentence the present participle gerund "driving" is being held as equivalent with "a car." Here is a corrected sentence.

"Driving without a seatbelt is looking for an accident to happen."