Grammar

The Top Grammar Mistakes That Cost CELPIP Points

A capstone checklist of the highest-frequency errors test-takers make — and the quick fix for each. Run through this before every Writing submission.

7 min read

Key strategies

1.Check articles (a/an/the) and the third-person -s — the two most common low-level slips.
2.Check subject-verb agreement after long phrases, and keep one consistent tense.
3.Fix run-ons and comma splices; vary your sentence length.
4.Proofread the last 3-4 minutes specifically for these — most errors are findable, not unknown.

The high-frequency error list

These are the mistakes raters see most often. Knowing them turns proofreading into a quick checklist.

1. Missing or wrong articles

✗ "I am student. I went to the home." → ✓ "I am a student. I went home."

2. Dropped third-person -s

✗ "He work hard." → ✓ "He works hard."

3. Subject–verb agreement after a long phrase

✗ "The list of names are long." → ✓ "The list of names is long."

4. Tense shifting

✗ "Yesterday I go out and bought food." → ✓ "Yesterday I went out and bought food."

5. Run-ons / comma splices

✗ "It was late, we left." → ✓ "It was late, so we left."

6. Preposition errors

✗ "It depends of you. I will arrive in Monday." → ✓ "It depends on you. I will arrive on Monday."

7. Uncountable plurals

✗ "many informations, some advices" → ✓ "much information, some advice"

8. its vs. it's

✗ "The team lost it's lead." → ✓ "The team lost its lead."

9. Double comparatives

✗ "more easier" → ✓ "easier"

10. Wrong word form

✗ "She is a very success person." → ✓ "She is a very successful person."

Your 4-minute proofreading routine

After writing, do two passes:

Content pass — did I answer every part of the prompt?
Grammar pass — run this checklist: articles, -s endings, agreement, tense consistency, sentence boundaries.

Most of these errors are not gaps in knowledge — they are slips you can catch. Building the habit of a focused final check is one of the highest-value things you can do for your Writing score.

Check yourself

A quick self-check on this lesson — pick an answer, then see the explanation. Not graded.

1. Fix the error: "He work in a bank and study at night."

2. Which sentence is correct?

3. Fix the tense shift: "Last night I cook dinner and watched a film."

4. Choose the correct sentence:

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