How to Improve Grammar and Punctuation in Essays?

Whether at the school level or higher, everyone finds it tough to ensure essays are fully grammatically correct and have punctuation-friendly sentences. Unique sentence structure makes writing attractive, so many students practice various sentence patterns.

This further increases the errors of grammar and punctuation throughout the writing. If the essays have such kind of mistakes, it looks so unreliable and leaves a confusing effect on the reader's mind.

It’s because even a single misplaced mark can change the meaning of a sentence. Beyond this, the essay writing that does not have accurate grammar fails to achieve success with this, as it can not convey ideas coherently. That’s why today we will learn how you can improve the grammar and make sure the punctuation marks are accurately adjusted for engaging sentence structures of essays.

Detect Errors & Correct Them Manually

When you have enough time to manually review and catch grammar mistakes, use the manual approach. In this method, you need to read the whole essay on your own.

Tip: Break down the essay into different small paragraphs, so it will be easy for you to get a thorough review in regard to catching grammatical and punctuational mistakes.

Here are the rules you have to concentrate on while writing or revising essays:

Complete Sentence Structure

Putting words on paper does not mean you are ready to go with that. It acts as the first draft of an essay that can have various inaccuracies. The sentences play as the building blocks of writing. So, first of all, try to write complete sentences, meaning it should feel like the sentence lacks any subjects, objects, or verbs. Usually, the essays are written in the present tense, but make sure you follow the sentence's formulas. Below example helps you to understand this:

Example:

Incorrect sentence (incomplete/ tense error):

“Went to the library for studying.”

Corrected sentence (complete and proper tense):

“I went to the library to study.”

Explanation:

The corrected sentence follows the formula of a subject (I), a verb (went), and an object/purpose (to study). It has consistent and standard sentence structure rules.

This example shows how greatly incomplete sentences can substantially impact the quality of essays. That’s why the casual and direct expressions should be avoided, since formal sentences emphasize correct structuring.

Many of you may have turned to AI generators to streamline your daily workload. No doubt that AI produces well-structured sentences, but it results in AI detection. You can use a tool like humanize AI text to eliminate this detection while enhancing flow among sentences in a human-like way, making the content sound more natural and easier for readers to trust and engage with.

Misspellings and Awkward Phrases

There is a high chance of spelling mistakes when the essays are written by a real human. Because we can accidentally write incomplete words and wrong ones. Awkward phrases are the terms that feel forced in any section of content because they may not deliver context effectively.

After finishing writing the essay, read it aloud to analyze where the vocabulary is weak. It also helps to catch false and incomplete spellings. Rewrite them properly to enhance professionalism or reinforce the “spelling checker” of the document. But unfortunately, you have to replace the tedious words with your own ability to strengthen writing proficiency.

Example:

Sentence with awkward phrases:

"He did the work very good and made a lots of mistakes, which was not good for the project."

With reader-friendly phrases:

"He completed the work effectively but made several mistakes, which negatively affected the project."

Explanation:

The first line had some incorrect phrases that have been replaced with clear, formal, and precise words in the next line. That sentence explains the context more smoothly.

Letter cases

We all are learning the rules of letter cases since the first grade, like which letters should be capitalized, how to start a sentence, and how to format the rest of the content correctly. You may forget this formatting in the first draft, but at the time of refining, do not ignore this basic.

• Capitalization: A capital letter is used to separate sentences. That means the first word should be a capital letter at the start of each line, which indicates the beginning of a new line. When you mention proper nouns, make sure they are also capitalized. Proper nouns refer to the naming of things that are special, e.g, Canada, Elon Musk, and the Bible.
• Lowercase: To write the overall content, lowercase letters are used except in headings, at the beginning of sentences, and for unique nouns.
• UpperCase: Uppercase alphabet is used rarely according to the capitalization rules. Make sure you did not press the “uppercase key” in standard text.

Example:

Below is an example that has the correct letter cases:

“NASA’s Mars rover sent new images of the planet.”

Punctuation Marks

Different styles of sentence approaches are utilized to create a persuasive essay. But at the beginner or learning level, it is likely impossible for them to accurately place these marks. Most of you may not even be familiar with them. There is more than just putting commas. Like the terminator used at the end of a declarative sentence, the exclamatory mark is used in imperative situations to show emphasis or urgency. You have to be fully aware of these writing essentials to maintain readability.

• Commas (,)

Commas are used to separate two items discussed in the same line. They assemble after introductory words or phrases, and when you need to divide clauses. It’s important to add a comma before “and” in a short list.

Example:

“After finishing his homework, John went to the park, and he played with his friends.”

• Semicolons (;)

A semicolon is a punctuation mark used when two complete sentences are closely related; a semicolon improves consistency there instead full stop. When the longer phrases are related and can be merged for better understanding, semicolons are employed.

Example:

“In our trip, we visited Paris, France; Rome, Italy; and Berlin, Germany.”

• Apostrophes (’)

During writing, the prevalent error is the misplacement or omission of apostrophes. Frequently, individuals don’t even know what it is. Apostrophes are implemented at the time when two words are combined (contractions) or to show possession.

Contractions- Unite two words by replacing specific letters with an apostrophe.
Example: “do not → don’t”, “it is → it’s”
Possession: Show ownership or belonging.
Example: “Jessica’s book”, “the dog’s leash”

• Dashes(– or —)

Dashes are also part of punctuation, but students use them again and again in writing to enhance uniqueness. Unfortunately, it results in AI detection because the machine tends to generate this pattern. That’s why you have to include them only where they are needed.

Em Dash (—): It’s the long one used when there is a break, parenthetical additions, or emphasis in sentences.

Example:

“I tried to call him—twice—but he hung them all.”

En Dash (–): This is a short dash, which is called an em dash. It indicates the connection and linking of two things, like the following:

Example:

“The event runs from 2019-2023.”

• Quotation Mark

When some data comes from another source, it is covered in quotations. It provides more clarification of information. Different quotations can be included in the essay that make it so engaging. In the academic landscape, it adds value in content. It indicates that someone’s particular words are added at a specific place.

Example:

“Albert Einstein once said, “Imagination is more important than knowledge.””

• End of Line – Period, Question Mark, Ellipsis, and Exclamation

At the time of rechecking the essay, make sure all sentences are properly ended with a line terminator at the last. This usually includes a full stop, a question mark, an ellipsis, or an exclamation mark.

Period: To end declarative sentences.

Question Mark: At the end of interrogative sentences.

Exclamation: To terminate exclamatory sentences or imperative sentences, highlighting feelings or hurry.

Improve Grammar & Punctuation With Digital Tools

We learned the possible grammar and punctuation mistakes anyone can make while drafting the first version of essays. You can consider them basic rules that significantly elevate skills. Sometimes, we have a short time to write essays, and it’s almost impossible to manually detect all syntax errors and fix them. In such situations, using AI tools as an advanced assistant is preferable. A lot of AI-powered grammar checkers are operating to refine essays at once. They automatically scan input in seconds and highlight the mistakes and typos. Some tools suggest, and some automatically convert the given text into a polish version. If you don’t want to wander on multiple tools, simply go to Corrector Castellano. It transforms the given text quickly and displays output with improved grammar and punctuation.

Unfortunately, the grammar tools can only correct grammar. You need a text humanizer to enhance the sentence structures, uniqueness, and natural tone. It makes sure the content is reader-friendly and engaging by focusing on the essay’s flow, consistency, and personalization. With grammar, maintaining quality also matters, which only an AI humanizer can do.

However, keep in mind that while these tools fix syntax, they may leave your writing feeling "robotic." If your work needs to pass an AI content detector for a class or publication, you should pair grammar checkers with a text humanizer. This ensures the content is reader-friendly, engaging, and maintains a natural human tone.

Final Words

Although grammar and punctuation are such a big challenge, it can be so easy for you to do this brainstorming task with practice and knowledge of the basics. As an advanced alternative, you can use digital AI tools to ensure proficient grammar is exercised successfully throughout the essay rapidly and efficiently.