Pronouns take the place of nouns. Two types that are often used are nominative, or subject, pronouns, such as "I" and "he," and object pronouns, such as "me" and "him." Often an object pronoun is used when a nominative one should be. Remember, nominative pronouns are the ones that do the action, so they are usually before the verb. Another common problem is that speakers often put themselves first in a sentence, when they should be last. So, the sentence "Me and John are going to a movie," should be "John and I are going to a movie" because "John" goes first, and the nominative pronoun "I" should be used, not "me." To make it easier, say the sentence using only one subject at a time. For example, "John is going to a movie" is correct, but "Me is going to a movie" is not.
When singular nouns are replaced by pronouns, they are commonly replaced by plural pronouns. For example, "A student should respect their teacher," should be "A student should respect his or her teacher," because "their" is plural, but "student" is singular. Another way to write this is by making both the noun and the pronoun plural; "Students should respect their teachers." This problem also occurs when replacing collective nouns, like "family" and "team," which are single units and must be replaced by single pronouns. So, "The team lost their chance to win the game," should be "The team lost its chance to win the game."
Verbs must agree with the subject of the sentence. Sometimes it is difficult to know whether the subject is singular or plural, as in the sentence "Each of these designs go well with my furniture." "Each" is the subject, and is singular, so the verb should be "goes," but the word "designs" looks like the subject. Another common mistake is made when there are many modifying words between the subject and the verb. For example, "The teacher, along with fours students and three parents, are going on a class trip," is wrong because only "the teacher" is the subject
Several verbs are used interchangeably, and although the meaning is still understood from the context of the sentence, they are used incorrectly. "Affect" and "effect," are commonly used improperly. "Affect" is usually a noun that means to influence something or someone, while "effect" is the result of an action, for example, "The medicine didn't affect the disease, but it did have side effects." "Bring" and "take" are two other examples that are commonly misused. Which one to use depends on the reference point. If you are at a place, and people are coming to you, they will "bring," but if you are the one that is going, you will "take." So, I take wine with me to a party, but my friends bring wine with them to my house.