Collocations - For naturally spoken English


collocation is a familiar grouping of words, especially words that habitually appear together. These associating words are able to convey the intention of the speaker/writer more effectively.

Every language has certain words that group together. Collocations come into existence when they are used repeatedly by native English speakers in similar contexts. For English language learners to sound more natural in their speech, learning collocations is essential. It will make you express yourself in a much better way. In English language testing exams like IELTS and TOEFL, use of collocations may just secure you those extra marks that otherwise would be unpredictable for you to obtain.

If you have ever been told that you sound unnatural or rehearsed while speaking English, you're probably not collocating correctly.

Some most common forms of collocations are as follows:
Type of collocation
Examples
adjective + noun
regular diet, strong coffee, express train, chilly weather, best friend, heavy rain
noun + noun
table mat, radio station, television channel, bar of soap, package tour, full-time job
verb + noun
make the bed, take a risk, have lunch, commit a crime, call (you/me) back
adverb + adjective
well aware, completely satisfied, highly motivating, totally awesome, highly unlikely
verb + preposition / prepositional phrase
listen to, wait for, fall for (it), pass out, game on, burst into tears
verb + adverb
seriously feel, firmly believe, really admire, whisper softly, vaguely remember
adjective + verb
fast asleep, wide awake, go online

There are many websites for you to refer to for a more detailed understanding on collocations. Oxford has even published a collocation dictionary, so do not hesitate to explore the resources out there for you.

Learning and using collocations skilfully will only happen when you expose yourself to more and more English, and not of the mechanical kind. Listen for collocations in someone's speech, look out for them in books and novels with easy-going content to help you phase yourself relaxingly into speaking effortless English. Most importantly, don't just learn them, use the collocations frequently in your speech.
Collocations - For naturally spoken English Collocations - For naturally spoken English Reviewed by Devanshi on January 17, 2016 Rating: 5

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