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plCommon errors
Incorrect position
1. Learners might place 也 at sentence-initial position of the second clause.
*我想喝茶，也他想。
我想喝茶，他也想。
*我想喝茶，也他想。
我想喝茶，他也想。
2. Learners might place 也 directly before a noun.
*我喜欢中文，也英文。
我喜欢中文，也喜欢英文。
我喜欢中文和英文。
*我喜歡中文，也英文。
我喜歡中文，也喜歡英文。
我喜歡中文和英文。
3. When 也 co-occurs with other adverbs, learners might place 也 in a wrong position.
*他们都也想去中国。
他们也都想去中国。
*他們都也想去中國。
他們也都想去中國。
Confusion between 也 and 还/還
Learner might confuse 也 and 还/還, which can both be translated as “also”. Although these two adverbs can be used interchangeably sometimes, they have different focuses: 也 emphasizes the “sameness”, whereas 还/還 introduces additional information.
我学英语，也学日语。
I learn both English and Japanese.
我学英语，还学日语。
In addition to English, I also learn Japanese.
我學英語，也學日語。
I learn both English and Japanese.
我學英語，還學日語。
In addition to English, I also learn Japanese.
When two different subjects perform the same action or share common properties, only 也 can be used.
*我会唱歌，他还会唱歌。
我会唱歌，他也会唱歌。
我會唱歌，他還會唱歌。
我會唱歌，他也會唱歌。
Errors caused by native transfer
In English, the adverb also has a relatively flexible position in a sentence. As a result, English speakers might place 也 in incorrect positions when translating or constructing sentences in Chinese.
Classroom activity
Make it clear that 也 cannot be placed before the subject but must be placed before the verb. Ask a question to elicit a positive response from a student. Then ask another student to summarize. For example:
Teacher: 我想去中国，你呢？/我想去中國，你呢？
Student 1: 我不想。
Teacher: (towards student 2) 你呢？
Student 2: 我想(去)。
Teacher: (towards student 3) 所以……
Student 3: 老师想去中国/老師想去中國，Student 2 也想(去)。
Other examples are 喜欢学中文/喜歡學中文, 觉得茶好喝/覺得茶好喝, or 会写汉字/會寫漢字……
Remind the learners that 也 cannot be placed before a noun but must be placed before a verb or a modal verb. Ask questions to elicit two positive or two negative answers, then ask another student to summarize. For example:
Teacher: 你喝茶吗？
Student 1: 我喝茶。
Teacher: 你喝可乐吗/你喝可樂嗎？
Student 1: 我不喝可乐/我不喝可樂。
Teacher: 你喝水吗/你喝水嗎？
Student 1: 我喝水。
Teacher: (towards student 2) 所以……
Student 2: Student 1 喝茶，也喝水。
Teacher: 你喝茶吗/你喝茶嗎？
Student 1: 我喝茶。
Teacher: (towards student 2) 你喝茶吗/你喝茶嗎？
Student 2: 我不喝茶。
Teacher: (towards student 3) 你喝茶吗/你喝茶嗎？
Student 3: 我不喝茶。
Teacher: (towards student 4) 所以……
Student 4: Student 2不喝茶，student 3也不喝茶。
This exercise format not only benefits familiarity with this grammar point but also enhances class interaction and students’ listening comprehension.
Other possible thematic fields for practicing 也 are food and drinks, family members, hobbies, etc.