English collocations – how words are put together
DEFINITION:
Collocation is a sequence of words that often occur together, because they sound correct and natural. Similar combination of words describing the same thing or situation might sound unnatural or even funny.
What could be the result?
As a result, it may have a negative impact on your confidence to speak English. Therefore good knowledge of English collocations and phrases is very mportant. It will help you speak more fluently with higher confidence and your English will sound much more natural.
Collocations examples – correct and incorrect:
| heavy rain -> correct | |
| strong rain -> incorrect | |
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| run fast -> correct | |
| run quick -> incorrrect | |
| fast food -> correct | |
| speed food -> incorrect | |
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| do the homework -> correct | |
| make the homework -> incorrrect | |
| fight hard -> correct | |
| fight tough -> incorrect | |
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| well done -> correct | |
| good done -> incorrrect | |
Collocation types with examples
There are several forms of collocations in English language. The most common types along with some examples are described in the following table:
| verb + noun | catch a bus, make a call, do a homework, take a photo, pay attention |
| verb + adverb | regret deeply, disagree strongly, deny completely, accuse falsely |
| adjective + noun | heavy rain, strong supporter, fast car, quick shower, big surprise |
| adverb + adjective | bitterly angry, deeply concerned, widely acceptable, highly appreciated |
| noun + noun | round of drinks, sense of humor, smell of success, bar of soap |
This is a short video that explains some of the most common verb + noun collocations.
Collocations versus phrasal verbs / idioms
Unlike phrasal verbs or idioms, collocations can be quite easily understood. That makes them a little bit easier to learn. However, the best way to learn them quickly and correctly is to read a lot of examples.
Here are some useful tips for your self-study:
1. in any situation, try to be aware of any collocation you hear or read
2. if you notice a collocation, write it down or associate it with a situation (context)
3. organize your list by words or by topic
Therefore it’s strongly advisable (another nice example of adverb + adjective collocation) that you read a lot of news articles where you can learn many collocations from daily life.
Our 2-step method:
In order to help you to understand correctly when somebody uses a collocation in a speech or conversation, we have created a concept based on examples from movies.
As you probably know, you can hear lots of collocations in American movies and TV shows. In fact, they are really frequently used in spoken English.
The method is very simple, yet very effective.
STEP 1. Listen to collocations in short video samples in real-life situations
These are the examples of some of them, which you will certainly hear in many conversations with English speakers on a daily basis.
So the best way to master them is to learn them in context in real sentences. And I am pretty sure that the best context is your favorite movie or TV show 🙂
STEP 2. Practice them in short exercises
More examples of sentences with English collocations
1. John was complaining bitterly about the poor attitudes of his staff.
2. Don’t judge him too harshly. You don’t know all the details.
3. Could you please do me a favor and stop smoking?
4. The proposed Enbridge pipeline poses a massive threat to pristine areas across central B.C.
Collocations | Idioms | Phrasal verbs | Words
LIST OF COLLOCATIONS WITH MEANINGS
| (117 terms) | |
| needles to say | when something is known and can be taken for granted, of course |
| brain damage | injury to brain |
| get straight | to make things clear |
| all of a sudden | suddenly, unexpectedly |
| do a favor | to help with something |
| fall asleep | to start sleeping |
| on your own | to be solely responsible for something |
| so to speak | when you try to get an attention to a choice of words (if metaphoric phrase is used) |
| play somebody against somebody | to make someone to have a conflict with someone else |
| pay attention | to listen carefully and trying to understand the subject matter |
| flat tires | tires with no air |
| induction day | first day when somebody starts in an organization |
| to be better off | to be in a better position than before |
| for a while | certain amount of time |
| take it slow | to do something slowly |
| make fun of somebody | make jokes about somebody, to mock |
| hard wood | floor made of wood |
| consolation prize | a small prize given to someone who lost in a competition |
| to get something looked at | to get something checked (by a doctor) |
| make (something) happen | accomplish or achieve something, not just talking but actually doing it |
| put (something) in action | to turn theory into action |
| meal to go | takeout food, food in plastic container |
| take a nap | to have a quick, short sleep |
| well-groomed | very well maintained person with regard to dress and appearance |
| without consent | without agreement or approval from other person |
| I am sorry about your loss | phrase used at funerals to express condolences |
| no offence | without intention to offend somebody |
| no offense | without intention to offend somebody |
| self-esteem | feeling good about own personality |
| happen to notice | to see accidentally |
| sealed container | container with a firm cover |
| come easy | happen easily |
| freshly prepared | recently prepared fresh food |
| at stake | amount or value which can be won or lost |
| criminal charges | formal accusation that somebody has commited a crime |
| straight up | directly |
| do one’s best | to do the maximum |
| take a while | to take some amount of time |
| human being | human (man or woman) |
| never mind | it does not matter |
| The best is yet to come | the best experience is still to come |
| takeout food | food in plastic container for eating later |
| raise an objection (to someone or something) | to disagree or to protest against someone or something |
| out of nowhere | when something appears suddenly and unexpectedly |
| side note | extra piece of information |
| in vain | without sense, pointless |
| file (tax) returns | to submit taxes to authorities |
| fancy dinner | dinner in an expensive restaurant |
| clam chowder | thick soup with clams (seafood) |
| Behave yourself | to behave decently |
| tax evasion | not paying taxes |
| snow squall | heavy snow precipitation |
| on purpose | to do something deliberately with an intention to do it |
| keep a promise | to do what was promised |
| say hi | form of greeting |
| to have a point | to be right about something, to provide a good description of a situation |
| beat downs | physical attacks |
| jet lag | conditions of sleep problem when travelling |
| take turns | when two or more people alternate in doing something |
| split x ways | to divide into x parts |
| take a chance | to risk |
| jumper cables | cables to help start the car engine when an auto battery is low |
| out of reach | unreachable, inaccessible |
| nasty freak | pervert person |
| tell him I said hi | to give greetings |
| pick pockets | to steal personal belongings of tourists from pockets |
| find (someone) attractive | to think that someone is attractive |
| first mate | the first officer on a ship after captain |
| to taste good | to have a good taste |
| fall asleep | start sleeping |
| cop-watch | watching whether police is not approaching |
| As you were! | Military command meaning that soldier may return to normal posture |
| in my time | during my life |
| bring to the boil | to reach the state when water boils |
| whipped cream | cream mixed using a whisk or mixer |
| evade responsibility | to run away from responsibility |
| take a loan | to borrow some amount of money |
| long-distance call | phone call between two distant cities or countries |
| go for something | to start doing something |
| senior year | final year in high school |
| to be on sale | when something is for sale at a discount price |
| stay put | stay where you are |
| snow-capped | covered with snow |
| soul mate | person with strong emotional connection |
| cruise ship | large ship for pleasure voyages |
| to stay between us | keep a secret, not to tell to anybody else |
| get going | to move, to start moving |
| take something the wrong way | to misunderstand or misinterpret something |
| high tide | rise of a sea level |
| take chances | to go into risk |
| by the way | incidentally |
| This is so us! | This is typical for us! |
| time zone | geographical zone with specific time |
| get to know each other | know other person better |
| crooked as a politician | corrupted as politician |
| come as a surprise | to make someone feel surprised |
| flax seeds | seeds of a flax plant |
| to be of service | to offer service |
| take eye off something | to look in the different direction |
| all around | all over the place |
| give a warm welcome (to someone) | to welcome someone with applause |
| best man | friend of the bridegroom at the wedding |
| chem analysis | chemical analysis |
| retread tires | to replace worn out material on tires |
| rib of beef | meat from a rib section of beef |
| tartar sauce | mayonnaise with chopped pickles |
| move forward | the next step in a process |
| cake recipe | step by step process for preparing a cake |
| couple of weeks away | in a few weeks |
| long-distance relationship | relationship when partners are living far from each other |
| seat is taken | seat is not vacant, seat is unavailable |
| take a look | to have a look |
| all over | everywhere |
| full time | working full hours (not part-time) |
| middle of nowhere | far from a civilization |
| sexual ardour | sexual passion |
| unspoken agreement | agreement without saying any words |