Word Choice
Word Choice
While word choice affects every author, native speaker or not, it can sometimes be especially vexing to ESL speakers, even those who have been speaking English fluently for years. In the following slides, we'll identify some of the major problems with word choice that are specific to the ESL writing community. We've broken word choice problems into five categories. Remember that there are many more.
1. Amounts and numbers
2. Actions
3. Adjectives versus adverbs
4. For versus since
5. Miscellaneous
Using the correct words for amounts and numbers comes naturally to native speakers because we hear these associations from birth. The response is automatic, just like it is for an ESL speaker in his or her native tongue. So a careful examination of the words that are often confused is certainly warranted. It helps if we think of it this way: use number words for countable nouns and amount words for noncount nouns. This seems fairly simple, but as we'll see it's not quite as cut and dried as one would expect. Let's look at some examples.
There are many ants marching up that hill.
I do not have much sympathy for you.
I have enough marbles to play the game.
In each of these sentences, a quantifier modifies a noun. The quantifiers are in italics and the nouns are in bold. Both ants and marbles are count nouns, as you can count the number of ants or the number of marbles. The noun sympathy, however, is a noncount noun. You would never say the following:
There are much ants marching up that hill.
I do not have many sympathy for you.
We'll get to the third sentence in a moment, but let's start with the first two ideas we have. When you are editing an ESL document, be sure that count nouns use quantifiers like many, a few, few, several, a couple of, and none of the.
Incorrect: I have little carrots with which to make dinner.
Correct: I have few carrots with which to make dinner.
Noncount nouns should use quantifiers like not much, a little, little, a bit of, a good deal of, a great deal of, and no.
Incorrect: I have a few water for us to drink.
Correct: I have a little water for us to drink.
Now back to that third sentence about the marbles. There are some words and phrases, such as all the, some, most of the, enough, a lot of, lots of, plenty of, and a lack of, that can be used for BOTH count and noncount nouns.
All the carrots are in the bucket.
All the sympathy in the world would not be enough.
Most of the ants have gone into their nest.
Most of the water has receded back into the ocean.
In many languages other than English, to do and to make are actually one word. The meaning of that word is determined by context. Many non-native speakers have difficulty getting used to the idea that one would need two different words to express what they consider to be the same idea. (After all, it's "easier" to have only one word, right?)
The to do/to make dichotomy is the best one to start with. To do something, you must actively carry out an action. To make something, you must create something from nothing (or from some raw materials). Let's look at some examples.
I am going to do my homework tonight.
I am going to make some homework assignments for my students tonight.
In each of these sentences, the use of do and make are perfectly logical. The speaker in the first sentence must do his or her homework, as in they must complete the homework assignment. The speaker in the second sentence is literally making homework assignments for his or her students to do.
The same kinds of problems ESL speakers have with to do/to make also exist for word pairs like did/made.
She did all the tasks on her list on Monday.
She made a task list to complete for Tuesday.
In each of these cases, we can apply the same standards we did to the previous examples. The woman completed the tasks and created a task list.
Adverbs and adjectives are easily confused in ESL writing, often because the construction of the adjectives and adverbs themselves is confusing. Let's look at an example.
Incorrect: The young boy is quietly.
Correct: The young boy is quiet.
We get into this aspect a little more in the "Comparatives and Superlatives" section.
Many people learning English are often confused by whether they should use for or since in a sentence or clause when referring to time.
For should be used to describe a specific and contained time period from the beginning to the end. Basically, it should be used to refer to a quantity of time, such as three days, two minutes, or forty years.
For + quantity of time
For five months
In contrast, since should be used when referring to a point in time (Wednesday, 9 o’clock, or 1490), as since is used to describe the time from a specific point in the past up to the immediate present.
Since + point in time
Since July
So for is used when referring to a quantity of time. A quantity of time includes units of time, for example minute, hour, day, week, and month, but it can also include a modifier, such as a few, several, these past few, and now.
These are some INCORRECT uses of for:
I haven't taken a break for half past nine.
The author hasn't written anything for 2000.
It has been there for last Monday.
These are CORRECT uses of for:
I haven't taken a break for two hours.
The author hasn't written anything for eleven years.
It has been there for a week.
In addition, for can be used with all tenses. Here are some examples:
They went to the pool for two hours every day.
They are going on vacation for a month.
She has being working on that painting for many months.
You need to take a rest for a few seconds.
I worked at the restaurant for five years.
Will you turn the music down for a few minutes?
For can also sometimes be omitted from the sentence or clause it is used in, and the sentence/clause will still be perfectly correct. However, if for is omitted, the meaning can potentially become unclear; it is generally better to include for for clarification or if you are unsure whether it should be included.
I have been waiting (for) a week for this parcel.
She's going to live there (for) five years.
Since should be used when talking about specific times, which are normally stated as hours, dates, years, eras, etc. In addition, since can be used with certain modifiers, such as last and the beginning/middle/end of. In addition, since is generally only used in the present perfect and past perfect tenses.
These are some INCORRECT uses of since:
He hasn't spoken French since three years.
There has been no news since several hours.
We have lived here since a very long time.
Here are CORRECT uses of since:
He hasn't spoken French since the beginning of college.
There has been no news since 11 o'clock.
We have lived here since 1973.
However, since can also be used in this structure: It is + quantity of time + since. For example:
It is a year since I saw you last.
It is a month since my last camping trip.
It has been five minutes since the bus was supposed to arrive.
There is another structure that also uses since:
Since + quantity of time + ago
Since three years ago
However, this structure is not commonly used by native speakers; instead, it is normally simplified to either
For + quantity of time
For three years
Or
Since + point in time
Since 2008
Many of these words are troublesome for native speakers, but they are especially vexing for ESL learners.
affect versus effect: Affect is a verb. Effect is a noun. This is probably the simplest way of memorizing the usage of these two troublesome words. Look at these examples.
The weather affected the outcome of the game.
The weather's effects were felt during the game.
can versus may: Can is primarily used to indicate ability, while may indicates permission to do something. Many children learn the difference early. A young boy will say to his mother, "Can I go ride my bike?" The witty mother will say, "I don't know, can you?" To which the boy responds, "May I go ride my bike?" The mother says, "Of course, dear." Let's look at another set of examples.
I can drive alone in my car.
I may drive alone in my car.
The first sentence implies that the speaker has the ability to operate a motor vehicle without the presence of another person in the car. The second sentence implies that the speaker has obtained permission to operate a motor vehicle without the presence of another person in the car.
bring versus take: Bring generally indicates that something (or someone) will be going with something else (or someone else) somewhere. Take implies that something (or someone) will eventually part ways with the taker and be left somewhere else. Let's look at a set of examples.
Will you bring me to Bethany's party on Friday night?
Will you take me to Bethany's party on Friday night?
In the first sentence, the speaker is asking the listener if the speaker can accompany the listener to the party and remain there for the duration. In the second sentence, the speaker is asking the listener to drop the speaker off at the party. The listener will then go off in another direction.
Take this note home to your parents, and bring it back signed tomorrow.
In this sentence, take implies movement away from the speaker, and bring implies movement toward the speaker.
further versus farther: Further is used to describe metaphorical distances, while farther is used to describe physical distances. Look at these two examples.
I don't know how much further I can stand this line of reasoning!
I don't know how much farther it is to the next rest stop!
In the first sentence, the speaker is indicating that she or he does not know the extent to which she or he can put up with the line of reasoning. This is not measurable. In the second sentence, the speaker is indicating that he or she does not know the distance between his or her present location and the next rest stop.
good versus well: Good is often confused with well when people use an adjective instead of an adverb. Look at these examples.
Incorrect: I played good in that baseball game last night!
Correct: I played well in that baseball game last night!
In the second sentence, well describes the verb played. But this isn't the only problem you may run into. The opposite can also happen.
Incorrect: She is a well chess player.
Correct: She is a good chess player.
In the second sentence, good modifies the noun player.
come versus go: Come is used in a sentence to describe a movement, but it is not just any movement. Come is used to describe a movement to the place where the speaker (and sometimes the hearer) is, was, or will be. Go is used in a sentence to describe movement, but unlike come, go is used to describe movement to places where neither the speaker nor the hearer are.
Incorrect: Can we come to an amusement park this summer?
Correct: Can we go to an amusement park this summer?
The second sentence is correct because the speaker wants to go to an amusement park in the future. This means that no one is there because it hasn't happened yet, and when neither the speaker or hearer is there, go is used.
ESL writers often have problems with word choice, especially when it has to do with more abstract concepts. Remember to pay special attention to the following when editing ESL documents.
Amounts and numbers
Actions
Adjectives versus adverbs
For versus since
Miscellaneous
With respect to the "miscellaneous" category, remember that many of the same homonyms that trouble native speakers are doubly problematic for non-native speakers.
Last Updated: 09/29/2022