Common English Mistakes in Personal Blog Posts by Cantonese Speakers

This page focuses on errors typically made by native Cantonese speakers from Hong Kong when writing a Personal Blog Post in English.

Mistake Example #1

Overuse of 'very' to emphasize adjectives

I had averyn amazing day today! The weather wasvery sunny, and I felt very happy to spend time at the verybeautiful park near my home. The flowers were verycolorful, and the air was veryso fresh, making it avery perfect place to relax and enjoy the afternoon.

Text corrected by:
Jennifer, Detroit, Michigan USA

"The word "very" was used several times, so I took most of them out to avoid too much repetition."

I had an amazing day today! The weather was sunny, and I felt very happy to spend time at the beautiful park near my home. The flowers were colorful, and the air was so fresh, making it a perfect place to relax and enjoy the afternoon.

I had a very amazing day today! The weather was very sunny, and I felt very happy to spend time at the very beautiful park near my home. The flowers were very colorful, and the air was very fresh, making it a very perfect place to relax and enjoy the afternoon.

Mistake Example #2

Overuse of direct translations from Cantonese

Today I went to the wet market, and it was veryas crowded likeas a can of sardines. I bought some fresh vegetables and fish, and then I went to drink tea with my friend. We talked about everything under the skyun, and it was a very happygood time.

Text corrected by:
Michele A., Boston, Massachusetts; United States

"I just replaced a word or two to make the English sound more natural. Otherwise, the ideas in this text are clearly expressed."

Today I went to the wet market, and it was as crowded as a can of sardines. I bought some fresh vegetables and fish, and then I went to drink tea with my friend. We talked about everything under the sun, and it was a very good time.

Today I went to the wet market, and it was very crowded like a can of sardines. I bought some fresh vegetables and fish, and then I went to drink tea with my friend. We talked about everything under the sky, and it was a very happy time.

Mistake Example #3

Confusion with countable vs. uncountable nouns ('She has much friends')

Today I want to share about my weekend adventure. I went to the beach with ma bunchof friends, and we had so much fun. We brought manylot of food and drinks, and we played games on the sand. It was a perfect day, and I feel grateful to have madesuch much good memories with them.

Text corrected by:
Vince, United States

"Your ideas were clear :) I just made a few small changes to improve the flow and polish things up."

Today I want to share about my weekend adventure. I went to the beach with a bunch of friends, and we had so much fun. We brought a lot of food and drinks, and we played games on the sand. It was a perfect day, and I feel grateful to have made such good memories with them.

Today I want to share about my weekend adventure. I went to the beach with much friends, and we had so much fun. We brought many food and drinks, and we played games on the sand. It was a perfect day, and I feel grateful to have such much good memories with them.