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StopmakingtheseadvancedgrammarmistakesinEnglish.
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Summary
English with Lucy explains 7 common grammar mistakes that advanced learners make, covering conditionals, reported speech, and relative clauses with clear examples and corrections.
Using will in first conditional if-clauses — avoid it — use present simple instead. "If my flight will be delayed, I'll miss my connection" should be "If my flight is delayed, I'll miss my connection."
Third conditional if-clauses require past perfect (had), not would have. "If I would have known, I would have come sooner" should be "If I had known (If I'd known), I would have come sooner."
Use present tense, not will, after time expressions like when, as soon as, after, until. "I'll text you when I will get home" should be "I'll text you when I get home" or "when I've got home."
Present perfect indicates a finished action with a finished time period; use past simple instead. "We've been there for 2 weeks" should be "We were there for 2 weeks" because the time period is complete.
About this video
This video tackles grammar errors that affect polished English rather than communication itself. Lucy walks through mistakes such as using "will" in the if-clause of first conditionals ("If my flight will be delayed") and in the if-clause of third conditionals ("If I would have known"), both of which are marked errors in standard English. She also highlights overuse of "will" for future plans—learners often say "I will go to the beach" when they should use present continuous ("I'm going to the beach") or "be going to" for arranged plans. A particularly useful section explains the subtle difference between present continuous (for fixed, arranged plans with other people) and "be going to" (for decisions without formal arrangements).
This is excellent shadowing material because Lucy speaks at a measured, natural pace with clear pronunciation and confident intonation. She repeats correct versions immediately after each error, making it easy to hear and repeat the contrast. The expressions are authentic conversational English—no reading-aloud tone.
The video suits B1 learners aiming for B2 fluency, or anyone tackling grammar beyond the basics. Learners will internalize when to use present tenses with time expressions, how tense-shifting works in reported speech, and when "which" is required in non-defining relative clauses. The examples are concrete and relatable (flights, plans, meetings), so learners can apply these rules to their own speech right away.
Idioms & expressions
trip someone up — to cause confusion or difficulty for someone. "Using the present simple to refer to a future event seems to trip a lot of my students up."
not get a lot of love — to not receive approval or favour (informal). "That word is not getting a lot of love from me today."
sound quite right — to not seem natural or correct to native speakers. "It just doesn't sound quite right to native speakers."
to be clear — to state something unambiguously. "Let me be clear. Native speakers often use these interchangeably."
pretty lazy about it — to not be strict or careful about something (informal). "Native speakers are pretty lazy about it [tense-shifting]."
spot the mistake — to notice or identify an error. "Can you spot another common mistake?"
dive into — to begin investigating or discussing something with energy. "Let's dive into our seven common mistakes."
