If you speak Arabic and are learning English, some of your mistakes are not random. Many Arabic-speaking learners make the same ones, because Arabic builds sentences in a different way. This article shows ten common A2 mistakes. Each one has a short rule, two correct examples, and a note to help you avoid it.
Why do these mistakes happen?
When we speak a new language, we often translate in our heads from our first language without noticing. That is normal. Arabic allows sentences with no verb to be in the present. It has no word like a before nouns. Its adjectives agree with nouns in number. Its verbs carry tense in the main verb. English does something different in each case. When you understand the reason for a mistake, it is easier to fix than when you only memorise a rule.
Read each item, look at the wrong sentence, and then say the correct sentence aloud twice. Saying it aloud helps the correct form stay in your memory.
Sentence-building mistakes
1. Forgetting the verb to be
In Arabic you can say a sentence meaning she teacher, with no verb. In English you must use am, is, or are.
- Wrong: She teacher. Correct: She is a teacher.
- Wrong: My parents at home. Correct: My parents are at home.
Usage note: for age, say I am 20 years old, not I have 20 years, even though Arabic uses the idea of having.
2. Leaving out a / an
Arabic has no small word before an indefinite noun, but English puts a or an before a singular countable noun, especially with jobs.
- Wrong: He is engineer. Correct: He is an engineer.
- Wrong: I need pen. Correct: I need a pen.
Usage note: use an before a vowel sound, as in an apple, and a before a consonant sound, as in a book. With plurals, use no article: They are engineers.
3. Repeating the subject with a pronoun
In speech, you may say my brother, he works in a bank. In standard English, the noun alone is the subject, and you do not add a pronoun after it.
- Wrong: My sister she works in a bank. Correct: My sister works in a bank.
- Wrong: The students they are late. Correct: The students are late.
Usage note: once you say the subject noun, do not repeat it with he, she, or they in the same sentence.
Verb mistakes
4. Forgetting the -s with he / she / it
In the present simple, add -s or -es to the verb with he, she, and it.
- Wrong: He work every day. Correct: He works every day.
- Wrong: She watch TV. Correct: She watches TV.
Usage note: go becomes goes, and have becomes has. With I, you, we, and they, the verb has no -s: I work.
5. Mixing present simple and present continuous
Arabic often uses one present form for both habits and actions happening now. English separates them: the simple form is for habits and facts, and the continuous form is for what is happening now.
- Wrong: I am working every day. Correct: I work every day.
- Wrong: The baby sleeps now. Correct: The baby is sleeping now.
Usage note: words like every day and usually point to the simple form. Words like now and at the moment point to the continuous form.
6. Putting the past form after did
In Arabic, the verb itself shows the past. In English questions and negatives, did shows the past, and the main verb stays in its base form.
- Wrong: Did you went to school? Correct: Did you go to school?
- Wrong: She didn’t came. Correct: She didn’t come.
Usage note: after did and didn’t, always use the base verb: go, come, see.
Noun and adjective mistakes
7. Adjective position and plural
In Arabic, the adjective comes after the noun and agrees with it in number. In English, the adjective comes before the noun and never changes.
- Wrong: a car red. Correct: a red car.
- Wrong: two beautifuls girls. Correct: two beautiful girls.
Usage note: only the noun takes -s in the plural. The adjective stays the same.
8. Making uncountable nouns plural
The Arabic words for information and advice are plural, but in English information and advice are uncountable. They take no -s and no a.
- Wrong: She gave me some informations. Correct: She gave me some information.
- Wrong: I need an advice. Correct: I need some advice.
Usage note: furniture, news, and homework work the same way. We say The news is good, with a singular verb.
Preposition and word-choice mistakes
9. Prepositions of time
Arabic often uses one word for many places and times, so learners tend to use in everywhere. English separates them: at for clock times, on for days and dates, and in for months, years, and parts of the day.
- Wrong: See you in Monday. Correct: See you on Monday.
- Wrong: The class starts in six o’clock. Correct: The class starts at six o’clock.
Usage note: we say in July, in the morning, and at night. Learn them as whole phrases.
10. Saying I am agree
In Arabic, you can say I am in agreement, which is easy to translate as am agree. In English, agree is a verb on its own.
- Wrong: I am agree with you. Correct: I agree with you.
- Wrong: I am not agree. Correct: I don’t agree.
Usage note: use with before the person: I agree with Sara.
The ten mistakes in one table
| Mistake | Correct |
|---|---|
| She teacher. | She is a teacher. |
| He is engineer. | He is an engineer. |
| My sister she works. | My sister works. |
| He work. | He works. |
| I am working every day. | I work every day. |
| Did you went? | Did you go? |
| two beautifuls girls | two beautiful girls |
| informations | information |
| in Monday | on Monday |
| I am agree. | I agree. |
How to fix these mistakes in daily life
- Choose only one mistake each week. Do not try to fix everything at once.
- Write three true sentences about your life using the correct form.
- Read the sentences aloud, then copy them into a small notebook.
- Look through your older writing and search for the same mistake.
- Return to this list after two weeks to check that you have not forgotten the earlier items.
Final thoughts
These mistakes do not show weakness. They are a natural result of moving from one language to another. The better you understand the difference between Arabic and English at each point, the fewer mistakes you will make. Start with the ones you make most often, try the practice questions, and use the checklist to track your progress.