5 Common Mistakes that Latin Americans Make When Writing in English

When learning English, it is common to make typing mistakes that can make it difficult to understand the message. Here we present the five most common mistakes that Latin Americans tend to make when writing in English:

1. Confusing “there”, “their”, and “they’re”:

These three words sound the same but have different meanings. “There” refers to a place, “their” is a possessive pronoun and “they’re” is the contraction of “they are”. It is important to make sure you use the correct word to avoid confusion.
Example:
Incorrect: “Their going to the park on they’re bicycles”
Correct: “They’re going to the park on their bicycles”

2. Incorrect word order:

This error is common when forming questions or using adjectives and adverbs in a sentence. It’s important to understand the basic sentence structure of English, which is subject-verb-object.

Example:

“Is your new car fast?” In this sentence, the subject is “your new car,” the verb is “is,” and the adjective “fast” is describing the car. It’s important to remember to put the subject before the verb and the adjective after the verb in a question like this.

3. Misuse prepositions:

Prepositions can be tricky because they are used differently in English compared to other languages. Students from Latin America or Spain often overuse prepositions or use them incorrectly.

Example:
Incorrect: ” I need help to write essay.”
Correct: ” I need help to write an essay.”

4. Incorrect use of verb tenses:

Many Spanish speakers struggle with using the correct verb tense in English, especially when it comes to the present perfect and past simple. For example, instead of saying “I have eaten breakfast,” someone might say “I have ate breakfast.” This mistake can be confusing and make it difficult for native speakers to understand the intended meaning..

5. Using direct translations:

Latin-American English learners tend to express themselves by using English as a their native language, Spanish. This means trying to use the same sentence structure and grammar rules from their first language in English, which can lead to confusion and errors.

For example, in Spanish, the adjective comes after the noun, while in English, it usually comes before the noun. So, a Latino learner may say “The book red” instead of “The red book,” which is the correct English word order. Another example is the use of prepositions, which can vary greatly between languages. In Spanish, you would say “Yo voy a la tienda” but in English, you would say “I go to the store” without the preposition “a.”

It’s important for Latino learners of English to understand that each language has its own unique structure and rules, and trying to directly translate from one language to another can lead to errors and misunderstandings. Instead, they should focus on learning English grammar rules and sentence structure through practice and immersion. See our English Programs here: Elite Language Academy.