Common English Mistakes in Personal Essays by Slovak Speakers

This page focuses on errors typically made by native Slovak speakers from Slovakia when writing a Personal Essay in English.

Mistake Example #1

Incorrect placement of adjectives ('The car red' instead of 'The red car')

Growing up in Slovakia, I always loved the highmountains highand thgreen forestsgreen. My family and I would often take trips to the lakebeautifullake near our village. The warmmemories of those dayswarm are something I cherish deeply.

Text corrected by:
Gregg, Los Angeles, CA

"This needed some adjustments to correct adjective placement."

Growing up in Slovakia, I always loved the high mountains and green forests. My family and I would often take trips to the beautiful lake near our village. The warm memories of those days are something I cherish deeply.

Growing up in Slovakia, I always loved the mountains high and the forests green. My family and I would often take trips to the lake beautiful near our village. The memories of those days warm are something I cherish deeply.

Mistake Example #2

Omitting 'it' as a subject in dummy subject sentences ('Is raining' instead of 'It is raining')

Growing up in Slovakia, I always loved the changing seasons. It is amazing how the colors of the leaves transform in autumn, creating a beautiful landscape. When I was a child, my family would often go hiking in the mountains, and thisis one of my favorite memories.

Text corrected by:
Jennifer, Detroit, Michigan USA

"A couple of the sentences were missing a subject, so I added them. Good work overall!"

Growing up in Slovakia, I always loved the changing seasons. It is amazing how the colors of the leaves transform in autumn, creating a beautiful landscape. When I was a child, my family would often go hiking in the mountains, and this is one of my favorite memories.

Growing up in Slovakia, I always loved the changing seasons. Is amazing how the colors of the leaves transform in autumn, creating a beautiful landscape. When I was a child, my family would often go hiking in the mountains, and is one of my favorite memories.

Mistake Example #3

Struggles with perfect tenses ('I am here since three years')

I hamve been living in Bratislava sincefor two years, and it has been a wonderful experience. I have met many people and learned so much about Slovak culture, but I am still not used to the cold winters here.

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."

I have been living in Bratislava for two years, and it has been a wonderful experience. I have met many people and learned so much about Slovak culture, but I am still not used to the cold winters here.

I am living in Bratislava since two years, and it has been a wonderful experience. I have met many people and learned so much about Slovak culture, but I am still not used to the cold winters here.