Writing essays is an essential part of college life, but many students struggle with grammar errors that can lower their grades and affect the clarity of their writing. These mistakes often occur due to rushed assignments, lack of practice, or confusion over certain grammar rules. Fortunately, with some guidance and careful revision, these errors can be easily corrected.

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Let’s take a closer look at the most common grammar mistakes college students make in essays—and how to fix them.

1. Subject-Verb Agreement Errors

One of the most frequent issues is subject-verb agreement. This happens when the verb doesn’t agree in number with the subject. For example:
“The list of assignments are long.”
The correct version is:
“The list of assignments is long.”
Remember, the verb should agree with the main subject, not with words in between.

2. Misplaced or Dangling Modifiers

Modifiers are words or phrases that describe something else in a sentence. If they’re misplaced, the meaning can become confusing or funny. For example:
“While reading the book, the phone rang.”
This suggests the phone was reading the book! The fix is to place the modifier next to what it describes:
“While I was reading the book, the phone rang.”

3. Comma Splices

A comma splice occurs when two independent clauses are joined by only a comma. For example:
“She studied hard, she passed the exam.”
Correct ways to fix this include:

Using a semicolon: “She studied hard; she passed the exam.”

Adding a conjunction: “She studied hard, and she passed the exam.”

Making two sentences: “She studied hard. She passed the exam.”

4. Incorrect Use of Apostrophes

Apostrophes often confuse students, especially between possessives and contractions. For instance:
“Its a great day.” (incorrect) should be “It’s a great day.”
And “The dog lost it’s collar.” (incorrect) should be “The dog lost its collar.”
Remember:

It’s = it is or it has

Its = possessive form

5. Sentence Fragments

A sentence fragment is an incomplete sentence, often missing a subject or verb. Example:
“Because I was tired.”
This is a dependent clause and needs a main clause to complete the thought:
“I stayed home because I was tired.”

6. Run-on Sentences

Run-ons happen when two or more independent clauses are joined without proper punctuation or conjunctions:
“He loves to write he writes every day.”
Fix it by separating with a period, semicolon, or conjunction:
“He loves to write. He writes every day.”
or
“He loves to write, and he writes every day.”

7. Confusing Homophones

Homophones are words that sound alike but have different meanings, such as there, their, and they’re. Using the wrong one is a common error:
“Their going to the party.” should be “They’re going to the party.”
Always double-check the meaning before using these words.