English is hard to learn

English Is Hard To Learn

There's no doubt that English is hard to learn, especially for non-English speakers. It takes a lot of time and practice to write error-free sentences. We also all know that to correct your grammar you must first correct your sentence.

Let’s start our next article with a complex sentence. I am sorry; I don’t know whether it’s a simple, complex, or compound sentence. By the word “complex” what I mean is “disturbing”. So, the sentence is: “The complex houses married and single soldiers and their families.” 



The complex houses married and single soldiers and their families.

You always want to correct your grammar, and for that, you have to correct your sentences, right? I know that the probability of not understanding the above sentence, shown in the picture is very high. I know you are already puzzled and got fed up with the grammar rules of the English language. And you also noticed that nearly all the rules are surprisingly connected with various exceptions. But, in spite of that, you didn’t lose heart and kept on trying your level best to make your sentences error-free. I know you search for this type of phrase all the time in your Google search box; and when you find one, you dive into the site without any further delay. I also know that you have a love for the English language. You are curious to know more about the language. You know for sure that acquiring this damn language is a must, as you can’t survive without it. You want to write and speak the language fluently, don’t you?

And now, since you are present here, in this grammar-correction-related blog, I am absolutely sure that you are a non-native speaker of English and want to improve your second language. And at the same time, you are also curious to know about the content of this article and expect to get something interesting, something new here, right? I assure you that you are at your expected place. Please go through the contents of this blog and I am sure you won’t be disappointed. So without further delay let’s begin our journey to hone our English language skills.

Imagine you are the head of the department of English in an institution. I know you have received a master's degree in English. Imagine that you are given a task. You are to take your pen and paper and without thinking much, just have to write a complex sentence from your own mind. No, I am sorry, don’t you ever take the risk of making mistakes. Better imagine the other way around. Let one of your students in your class take the risk of writing a complex sentence on his test paper and you check for its grammatical accuracy. Does it sound good to you now? Okay? Just do it; I mean, you check the sentence your student has just written it down on his test paper. What has he written? “The complex houses married and single soldiers and their families.” (Oh! I forgot to tell you, the student didn't write that sentence himself. In fact, he has copied the sentence from Wikipedia); the link has been given below for your knowledge.

So now, your job is to examine his sentence and grade his writing. You have to find out the faults in his sentence. I know very well that you will have a really hard time evaluating his writing. Do I tell you why? This is not your fault at all. Actually, this is the job of a professional English language editor. A professional editor should be a native English speaker and he should have a high degree in English grammar. He must have deep knowledge of editing and proofreading the English language. Since you are not a native speaker of English, it will not be possible for you to know every nook and corner of a second language. You have learned English in the institutions; you have not acquired it from your parents and surroundings. You are just one out of many teachers, found everywhere outside the English-speaking countries.

Now I will tell you the real story behind this complex sentence. Check the link given above and you will be directed to a particular page in Wikipedia, where it is said that this type of sentence is called a ‘garden-path sentence’, which is grammatically correct but is arranged in such a way that most readers find it hard to understand. If you are interested to know more about the ‘garden-path sentences’, please ask your “Aunt Google” for help, I believe, she won’t dishearten you.       

Let's take another example. I am afraid this article is going to be a bit longer than I normally post. Please bear with me!

Suppose you are a teacher in a school where everything is taught only in the ‘regional’ language and English is considered just as one among the other subjects. So, you teach them English, and the students hardly take any interest in it. Now, for the test, you asked the students to write five grammatically correct sentences, each sentence carrying 2 marks and the total marks being 10.

One of the students wrote these five sentences in his answer paper.

  1. The old man the boat.
  2. The day before yesterday, John sat in a bench for an hour and read a nice novel.
  3. June will have been driving her car for the past two hours.
  4. I like French.
  5. I like the French.

Following are the conditions set for the test, read them carefully:

  1. The student will get two full marks for each correct sentence and won’t get any marks for any incorrect answer.
  2. The teacher has to mark all the sentences with red ink stating whether they are right or wrong by putting a tick or a cross mark beside each sentence.
  3. If the teacher finds any of the sentences grammatically incorrect, then he has to explain to the student the necessary grammar rules applicable in that context and make him understand. Adequate spaces will be provided below each sentence for the ‘grammar explanation’. 

Am I clear? So, now tell me how many marks will your student get out of 10?

NB: I am sorry to inform you that you have to wait for the second part of this article, which will be posted soon. I am extremely sorry for the inconvenience! In the second part, I will try to explain the grammar explanations of all five sentences in detail. I wish we'll meet again soon! 


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“The old man the boat.” Is this sentence correct?

To Correct Your Grammar You Must Correct Your Sentence.

We all want to Correct our Grammar and Correct our Sentences

Correct Your Grammar    

Please let me know if you have got any suggestions or comments, and if you are generous enough please share these articles with your friends. 🙏🙏 

  




 

Grammar fanatic and a lifelong learner

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