Every person makes mistakes when writing, and students shouldn’t be ashamed of their errors since they’re still in the process of learning.
That said, nowadays, there are many tools that can help a person polish their writing.
You can easily make your essay stand out and look professional, and this article provides five of the best ways to avoid grammatical errors and to make your written text clear and top-class.
Leverage Advanced Grammar Check Tools
One of the most effective allies for any digital-age student is a sophisticated grammar checker.
Such programs alert you to various problems, such as mismatched subjects and verbs, misused conjunctions, and other abuse of voice.
With each suggestion, you are told exactly why the correction needs to be made.
Here are the most popular grammar-checking tools you should try:
Name | Price | Features |
---|---|---|
Grammarly | Free version available; Premium starts at $12/month | Real-time grammar and spelling checks; style suggestions; tone detection; plagiarism checker. |
Hemingway Editor | Free online version; Desktop version is $19.99 (one-time fee) | Identifies complex sentences and common errors; suggests simpler alternatives; highlights passive voice and adverbs. |
Ginger Software | Free basic version; Premium starts at $20.97/month | Grammar and spell check; sentence rephraser; translation tools; text reader. |
ProWritingAid | Free limited online version; Premium starts at $20/month | In-depth writing reports; style analysis; grammar and punctuation checking; plagiarism detection. |
WhiteSmoke | Starts at $5/month | Grammar, punctuation, and style checker; Translator; plagiarism checker; templates for various types of writing. |
If you use such tools, your document will be free of errors, but you’ll also learn more about common grammatical mistakes as you go.
Try to make some of these tools automatically flag mistakes as you edit your work. If you want a human to edit your paper or wonder, “Who can write my essay?”, try UKWritings. This service offers writing, editing, and proofreading services.
Read Aloud or Use Text-to-Speech
Reading an essay can reveal awkward phrasing and jarring grammatical inconsistencies that are not so easy to spot on the screen or paper.
If there’s anything more dreadful than forced read-alouds in school, it’s reading your own work out loud.
If reading your text aloud feels terribly awkward for you, then use text-to-speech software to have your own essay ‘read’ to you.
It’s better to hear it from a digital voice than to hear your professor point out awkward phrases to you when your essay is already submitted.
Peer Reviews and Feedback
Even if your structure is perfectly clear to you, it may be helpful to imagine how a different reader’s mind works.
Remember that you have an idea of how your paper should go; you might be so wrapped up in that idea that it’s hard for you to see where it isn’t working.
If you’re having trouble, don’t despair – ask others to review your writing. Give your essay to peers, a mentor, or a tutor and you may get new ideas for how to get from point A to point B in your paper.
If there’s no one who can check your paper for you, read this UKWritings review to see why this service would be of help in this situation.
Expert editors can catch what you may have missed in the first drafts. They can point out awkwardly arranged words, for example, and together you can find exactly what the problem is.
Simplify and Clarify Your Writing
Try keeping your sentences short and simple. Rather than packing them tightly with verbs, prepositional phrases, and adjectives, break up the long sentences into shorter and simpler ones; and use direct language.
Use the active voice as often as possible because it is easier to follow. Your essay will be better in terms of directness and simplicity.
Consistent Practice and Learning
Learn to review your writing on a regular basis by doing the following:
- Write consistently. Keep a journal, blog, or jot down a paragraph here and there to keep your writing muscles revved up. If you have an especially difficult subject area, something as simple as keeping a glossary of related terms and phrases will get your writing ‘feel’ heightened.
- Take an online workshop or course. There, you can improve your writing skills and grammar. There are great ones available on the internet.
Polished Papers, Perfected Skills
Few students realize that correcting errors in essays will do more than just enhance their GPA.
It will also help to gain the trust and confidence of their readers and boost how they feel about themselves as writers.
Our five tricks can make the most common grammar mistakes a thing of the past. Good luck with your writing!