Vocabulary
Common Mistakes I
Word Choice/Usage
mistakes are marked with an asterisk* and are printed in
red
suggested corrections are in bold
green
Sick
Examples:
"I have a sick*."
"I sick*."
"I am sick."
"I feel sick."
Explanation:
"Sick" is an adjective; it cannot be used as a
noun or a verb. So you can say:
"He is sick." Or "He is
a sick person." However, you cannot
say:
"He has a sick*."
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Die
Examples:
"He was died*
last night."
"He dead* last
night."
"He died
last night."
Explanation:
Die, when
used as a verb, means when a life is finished. So, you could say:
"Everyone will
die
someday". Or "Only the good die
young".
The past tense of
die is died. You could say:
"My grandfather
died last year."
Another more
polite way to say die is "pass away".
So instead of saying "My grandfather died last year", you can say "My
grandfather passed away
last year."
Dead, on
the other hand, is an adjective. It describes a noun.
For example:
"I saw a
dead
mouse on the street." Or "The mouse is
dead."
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Hospital
Examples:
"I had a cold last week, so I went to the
hospital*."
"I had a cold last week, so I went to
see the doctor."
Explanation:
In Japan,
many doctor's offices and clinics are called "hospitals" (病院).
However, in most countries, a hospital is a large institution and we
only go to a hospital for serious health problems. We usually go
to a "doctor's office" or a clinic if we have minor health problems like
a cold.
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