Three Common Mistakes that Intermediate Students Make
Mistake Number One:
One of the most common mistakes that Intermediate students of English make is with Possessive Adjectives or my your his her its our their
Many students have problems with su or sus. This is because in Spanish su is determined by the object and not the subject. In English it is the opposite.
For example:
Su casa
If the owner of the house is a man su is translated as “his.” However, if the house is owned by a woman, it would be “her.” If the house is owned by more than one person, the translation would be “their.” If you are talking to the subject of the house and using Usted, the translation would be “your.” Finally if the house were owned by a thing, it would be “its.”
Therefore:
Su casa/Sus casas (de él): his house/his houses
Su casa/Sus casas (de ella): her house/her houses
Su casa/Sus casas (de ellos/ellas): their house/their houses
Su casa/Sus casas (de Usted/Ustedes): your house/your houses
Su casa/Sus casas (de ello): its house/its houses
This is a little more confusing in Catalan, because the possessive adjectives change from masculine to feminine according to the object.
For example:
La seva casa (d’ell): his house
El seu cotxe (d’ella): her car
Therefore:
La seva casa (d’ell): his house
El seu cotxe (d’ell): his car
La seva casa (d’ella): her house
El seu cotxe (d’ella): her car
La seva casa (d’ells/elles): their house
El seu cotxe (d’ells/elles): their car
La seva casa (de vostè/vostès): your house
El seu cotxe (de vostè/vostès): your car
La seva casa (d’això): its house
El seu cotxe (d’això): its car
Mistake Number Two:
Many students confuse the difference between “used to” (solía) and “to be used to” (estar acostumbrado a). “Used to” is a semi-auxiliary and like “have to” or “ought to” Is followed by the verb.
For example:
I used to go: solia anar / solía ir
However, in the expression, “to be used to” the “to” is a preposition and prepositions are followed by the gerund.
For example:
I am used to going: estic acostumat a anar / estoy acostumbrado a ir
Because “used to” is in the Simple Past, it forms the negative and interrogative with “did.”
For example:
Did you use* to go?: Solies anar? / ¿Solías ir?
I didn’t use* to go: No solia anar / No solía ir
* (Notice the change from “used” to “use”)
“To be used to” uses the infinitive “to be” to form its negative and interrogative forms.
For example:
Are you used to going?: Estàs acostumat a anar? / ¿Estas acostumbrado a ir?
You aren’t used to going: No estàs acostumat a anar / No estas acostumbrado a ir
Mistake Number Three:
Many students have problems with the Present Perfect after “since” and “for.” This is basically because in Catalan and Spanish the present tenses are used to express this idea. With “since” it is a little easier because it is also used in the Catalan and Spanish translations.
For example:
I have been here since two: Estic aquí des de les dues / Estoy aquí desde las dos
However, “for” is not used in the Catalan nor the Spanish sentences. This is confusing for the students. The key word for them should be “Fa _____ que” or “Hace _____ que” and not for, which only appears in the English sentence.
For example:
Fa dos anys que estic aquí / Hace dos años que estoy aquí / I have been here for two years
Written by Mike Dean Alger for Aston School
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