Key word: mistake
1 Verb + mistake
Use the correct form of these verbs:
correct learn make
point out realise repeat
- Making mistakes is an important part of learning a language. If you don’t make mistakes, you don’t ____________ from them.
- I think if you can admit that you’ve ____________ a mistake, it is a sign of strength, not weakness.
- When I got home, I found out that I had been calling my girlfriend’s father by the wrong name. I felt such a fool when I____________ my mistake.
- Like many people, I find it difficult to avoid ____________ past mistakes. Why do we make the same mistakes over and over again?
- Read through your work carefully and ____________ any mistakes that you find.
- If you ____________ some people’s mistakes to them, they get very defensive. I don’t know why!
2 Common adjective collocations
Complete the sentences below with the following:
costly dreadful fatal occasional
genuine stupid common understandable
- The most____________ mistake people make is to water their plants too much.
- It was a perfectly____________ mistake to make. I assumed Jane and Morgan were married, too!
- The skaters made the ____________ mistake of assuming that the ice was thick enough to take their weight. Unfortunately, there was a thaw on. The ice gave way and they drowned.
- I should have scored 100% in the examination, but I made one____________ mistake.
- I can accept that anybody makes the ____________ mistake. We all do, but if it becomes a habit then you’re in trouble.
- Going to the football match when he should have been at work proved to be a very____________ mistake for Jeff. He was sacked.
- When he removed the wrong kidney from the patient, the surgeon made a ____________ mistake.
- I’m sorry, sir, but a____________ mistake has been made. We will do our best to find you a double room immediately.
3 Verb + for + mistake
Use these verbs to complete the expressions:
apologise check refuse take
a ____________ to accept responsibility for
b ____________ the blame for
c ____________ profusely for
d ____________ over your work for
Now use these complete expressions below, using the correct form of the verbs:
- He thought I was the secretary and not the manager because I was a woman, but he ____________ his mistake when I introduced myself. You should have seen his face!
- Nobody should have to ____________ other people’s mistakes.
- It’s always a good idea to ____________ mistakes before you hand it in.
- Five hundred pounds has gone missing from my bank account, but the bank ____________ the mistake.
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Notes 1. Note these expressions: Marrying you was the biggest mistake of my life! His work is always full of spelling mistakes. 2. Note the useful expression ‘It’s a mistake to think that…: It’s a mistake to think that violence will solve this issue. 3. ‘By mistake’ means accidentally: Someone must have left the window open by mistake. 4. Note these expressions with ‘make a mistake’. I made the mistake of inviting him to the party. I won’t make the same mistake again! Don’t worry. It’s an easy mistake to make. If you make a mistake, just cross it out.
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ANSWER KEY
Ex 1:
- learn 2. made 3. realised 4. repeating 5. correct 6. point out
Ex 2:
1 common 2. understandable 3.fatal 4. stupid
5 occasional 6. costly 7. dreadful 8. genuine
Ex 3:
a refuse b. take c. apologise d. check
- apologised profusely for
- take the blame for
- check over your work for
- refuses to accept responsibility for
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