So you’ve been studying abroad for a while, and you’ve got the language pretty much down. Well done, English is a frighteningly complex language that even native speakers have trouble with!

While there’s a million and one ways even the most particular of us can trip up in terms of grammar, we’ve made a list of the most commonly misused phrases and how to use them properly.

Extract revenge.
Extract means to remove something, for example your dentist would extract a tooth. The correct phrase is “exact revenge”, as to exact in this case means to inflict.

I could care less.
This is one of the phrases we hear misused most often, especially in the United States! The correct expression of this phrase is “I couldn’t care less”, which means, “It’s impossible for me to care less about this situation because I have no care left”, whereas “I could care less” means that "I’ve got plenty of care to give"!

For all intensive purposes.
The correct version of this is “for all intents and purposes”, and dates back to the 15th century, and means “basically” or “essentially”.

Should/would/could of. 
Though using "of" instead of "have" is an easy mistake to make, it’s one of our grammatical pet peeves! The correct version is “should/would/could have”, and “of” makes no sense in this context.

Each one worse than the next.
Unless you’re a fortune-teller (in that case, great), “each one worse than the next” makes no sense! The correct phrase is “each one worse than the last”, as you can only compare something to another thing you’re already aware of!

This list may seem pedantic, but making mistakes like these in English can really undermine your fluency. On the other hand, if you’re able to master them, you’re well on the way to becoming an expert in English!