Collocations

What is a collocation?
A collocation is two or more words that often go together. These
combinations just sound "right" to native English speakers, who
use them all the time. On the other hand, other combinations
may be unnatural and just sound "wrong". Look at these
examples:
Natural English...Unnatural English...the fast train
fast foodthe quick train
quick fooda quick shower
a quick meala fast shower
a fast mealWhy learn collocations?

Your language will be more natural and more easily

understood.

You will have alternative and richer ways of expressing

yourself.

It is easier for our brains to remember and use language in

chunks or blocks rather than as single words.

How to learn collocations

Be aware of collocations, and try to recognize them when

you see or hear them.

Treat collocations as single blocks of language. Think of

them as individual blocks or chunks, and learn strongly
support, not strongly + support.

When you learn a new word, write down other words that
collocate with it (remember rightly,remember
distinctly, remember vaguely, remember vividly).

Read as much as possible. Reading is an excellent way to

learn vocabulary and collocations in context and naturally.

Revise what you learn regularly. Practise using new

collocations in context as soon as possible after learning
them.

Learn collocations in groups that work for you. You could

learn them by topic (time, number, weather, money, family)
or by a particular word (take action, take a chance, take an
exam).

You can find information on collocations in any good

learner's dictionary. And you can also find specialized
dictionaries of collocations.

Types of CollocationThere are several different types of

collocation made from combinations of verb, noun, adjective
etc. Some of the most common types are:

Adverb + Adjective: completely satisfied

(NOT downright satisfied)

Adjective + Noun: excruciating pain (NOT

excruciating joy)

Noun + Noun: a surge of anger (NOT a rush of anger)

Noun + Verb: lions roar (NOT lions shout)

Verb + Noun: commit suicide (NOT undertake suicide)

Verb + Expression With Preposition: burst into tears

(NOT blow up in tears)

Verb + Adverb: wave frantically (NOT wave feverishly)

Fixed expressions
To children, non-native English speakers, and anyone who
confronts a fixed expression for the first time, they can be
baffling. A fixed expression is a little like a secret code that
allows access to a club that not everyone can enter. Its a phrase
that has a very specific meaning that cant be expressed any
other way and also cant be deduced just by considering the sum
of its parts. Some fixed expressions, like ready, aim, fire are
used so often that the opportunity to turn them into a joke
creates another fixed expression. Others, such as before you
know it or to tell you the truth have been around for so long
that they function almost as a single word.
Unlike idioms, fixed expressions typically offer neither folk
wisdom nor an image. Two heads are better than one creates a
bizarre, yet effective, visual idea of one body that operates with
two heads, while the idioms meaning is that two people
working on a problem have a better chance of solving it than just
a single thinker. Fixed expressions are more often a collection of

words with individual meaning that really have nothing to do

with one another.
All of a sudden is a perfect example. All means a totality, a
location or moment in time in which everything is included. Of
a is really just a grammatical phrase with no internal meaning
of its own. Sudden refers to something completely
unexpected; it is only the final word in this expression that
contributes meaning to the fixed expression, which is simply
another way of saying suddenly.
For example:
To be in no mood for jokes. To not be so important.
To top it all off.
Just so you know.
Therefore, for that reason.
For the first time.
On the other hand

Just in case.
Of course.
Apparently.

At least.

Idioms
An idiom is a phrase where the words together
have a meaning that is different from the

dictionary definitions of the individual words,

which can make idioms hard for ESL students
and learners to understand. Here, we provide a
dictionary of 3,782 English idiomatic
expressions with definitions.
For example:
Fight like Kilkenny cats
Jump off the page
Like collecting frogs in a bucket
Leading edge
when the pigs fly!
Not for nothing
Bleed dry
Let the dust settle
Take root
It takes all kinds to make a world
Bring home
Brush with death
Collocations, fixed expressions and idioms all relate to the combination of words.
Collocation refers to the way in which some words regularly occur together.
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Collocation refers to the way in which some words regularly occur together.
For example:

Do homework

Make the bed

A golden opportunity

Take a risk

A faint smell

There are no rules on how these collocations are formed, they simply sound right to the native
speaker.
For example:

You say heavy smoker but you would never say strong smoker and you say a powerful
car not a strong car.

Referring to height, we would never say Tom is high, we say Tom is tall.

We take a quick shower, not a fast shower and eat fast food, not quick food.

We have a blazing row, not a burning row and have a heated argument, not a hot
argument.

There are different types of collocations:

Adjective-noun:

Stale bread

Rotten apples

Regular exercise

Weak tea

Bright light

Check out
The 5 most common adjective-noun collocations

Noun + verb:

Cats purr

Fire burns

Snow falls

Wind blows

Kettle sings

Verb + noun:

Give a presentation

Do homework

Take a shower

Commit murder

Make a complaint

Check out
The most common collocations with Do

Adverb + adjective:

Fully aware

Completely satisfied

Utterly appalled

Terribly disappointed

Absolutely exhausted

Noun + noun:

Liquor licence

Milk chocolate

Round of applause

Bar of soap

Fire safety

Verb + adverb / Adverb + verb:

Finely chopped

Rely heavily

Rain heavily

Whisper softly

Flatly refuse

Check out these links for more collocations:

Collocations with TRAFFIC
Collocations with PRIDE
Collocations with FRIEND

An excellent online collocation dictionary can be found here:

http://oxforddictionary.so8848.com/

A fixed expression is the standard way of expressing a concept or an idea.

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A fixed expression is a form of expression that has taken on a more specific meaning than the
words themselves. It is the standard way of expressing a concept or an idea; it is something we
ordinarily say in certain situations.

Examples include:

Pleased to meet you

All of a sudden

On the other hand

More trouble than its worth

Neither here nor there

An idiom is an expression that cannot be understood from the meanings of its separate words
but
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An idiom is an expression that cannot be understood from the meanings of its separate words but
that has a separate meaning of its own.
Examples include:

A can of worms (a complicated problem)

A chip of the old block (a child with similar characteristics to one of their parents)

To be out for the count (to be sleeping peacefully)

Rub someone the wrong way (annoy or bother someone)

Pull someones leg (tease someone by trying to make them believe something that is not
true)

Check out this excellent link for lots of different examples of idioms:
English Idioms