say ... and do not say

English Expressions

Mistakes often result from too close a translation into English foreign idiomatic expressions.

The following are examples of such mistakes:
Say this…..Don’t say that

1-To be busy, not to have work
Don’t say: I have much work today.
Say: I am very busy today.

Note: but we can say, “ I have a lot of work to do today”

2- Mount or get on a horse, bicycle, train, bus, etc
not ride a horse, bicycle, train, bus, etc
Don’t say : He rode his bicycle and went home.
Say: He got on his bicycle and rode home

Note: “To ride” denotes a continuous action. “To mount” or “to get on” denotes a simple action

3- Take an hour, not need an hour
Don’t say: I shall need an hour to do that
Say” it will take me an hour to do that.

4- Allow or give a discount, not make a discount.
Don’t say: He made me a small discount.
Say: He gave me a small discount
Or, he allowed me a small discount

5- Take exercise, not make exercise.
Don’t say: You ought to make more exercise.
Say: You ought to take more exercise.

6- pretend, not make oneself that
Don’t say: He makes himself intelligent
Say: He pretends to be intelligent

7- Smoke a cigarette, not drink a cigarette
Don’t say: I did a lot of mistakes in my exam
Say: I made a lot of mistakes on my exam

8- Have one’s hair cut, not vut one’s hair
Don’t say: She needs to cut her hair
Say: She needs to have her hair cut

9- Give an example, not bring an example
Don’t say: Can you bring a better example?
Say: Can you give a better example

10- Tell or speak the truth, not say the truth.
Don’t say: This man always tells the truth
Say: This man always speaks the truth

11- A watch is slow or fasts, not goes behind or in front
Don’t say: My watch goes five minutes behind, or in front
Say: My watch is five minutes slow, or fast

12- This morning, etc, not today morning, etc
Don’t say: I was not in class today morning
Say: I was not in class this morning

Note: Avoid “today morning”, “today afternoon”, etc
Say: “this morning”, “this afternoon”, etc.

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