2.4 Collocations

A collocation is made up of two or more words that are commonly used together in English. Collocations are words that usually go together.

eg: Take the phrase Fast Food.

Fast is an adjective/adverb and food is a noun. Fast has lots of synonyms, including quick and speedy. Yet, saying quick food or speedy food sounds wrong, doesn’t it?

Food also has synonyms such as sustenance or fare. Again saying fast fare or fast sustenance doesn’t sound correct. This is precisely what is meant by a collocation.

Collocations are made up of adverbs, adjectives, nouns, prepositions and verbs. Types of Collocations are given below.

1) Adverb + adjective collocations:

Collocation	Example in Sentence
Absolutely delighted	Rae was absolutely delighted to win first prize.
Perfectly clear	It was perfectly clear that Dale disapproved of Winston.
Reasonably priced	Houses in this area are reasonably priced.
Fully aware	I’m fully aware you fancy Sam. It’s pretty obvious.
Eternally grateful	They’re eternally grateful for your help.
Deadly serious	I’m deadly serious. I’m not laughing about it.
Deeply regret	She deeply regrets saying that to you.
Strictly forbidden	It is strictly forbidden to enter this property.
Utterly stupid	We feel utterly stupid for not getting the question right.
Highly impressed	The teacher was highly impressed with your piano recital.

2) Adjective + noun collocations

Collocation	Example in Sentence
Nasty habit	Continuously lying is a nasty habit.
Key/main issue	The key issue here is that our investors aren’t willing to listen.
Mixed feelings	I have mixed feelings about leaving to move to Spain.
Absolute agony	I have a headache, and I’m in absolute agony.
Common knowledge	It’s common knowledge we need oxygen to breathe.
Weak point	My weak point is that I talk a lot.
Soft spot	I have a soft spot for him.
Steady job	Burt is doing really well. He has a new house, a dog, and a steady job too
Important thing	An important thing to remember is to always be polite.
Excruciating pain	He was in excruciating pain after falling off his bike.

3) Noun + noun collocations

Collocation	Example in Sentence
Abuse of power	Abuse of power in the workplace is illegal.
Spice rack	The spice rack in my kitchen is full. I have over 200 jars.
Sense of pride	They felt a sense of pride in their country.
Board game	Board games are a great way to spend time with family and friends.
Round of applause	The audience gave a round of applause after the speech.
Hand towel	Use a hand towel after washing your hands.
Pang of nostalgia	As I entered my primary school, I felt a pang of nostalgia.
Withdrawal symptom	She’s getting withdrawal symptoms from playing The Sims.
Side effects	A side effect of working from a desk is having a bad back.
Travel expenses	Keep the receipts of your travel expenses. You will get a reimbursement later.

4) Verb + noun collocations

Collocation	Example in Sentence
Break a promise	You broke your promise and told people my secret.
Get the message	He finally got the message and went away.
Go bankrupt	I went bankrupt 20 years ago.
Make an effort	I like my friend, but she never makes an effort to see me.
Have sympathy	She’s acting weird, but I have sympathy for her. She is having a hard time.
Pay/give someone a compliment	I paid Joni a compliment, and she said thanks.
Make progress	The teacher said I was making progress with my English.
Break the news	I was the journalist that broke the news that day.
Have a rest	I am so tired. I’m going to have a rest.
Catch a bus	I catch the bus to work every day.

5) Verb + preposition collocations

Collocation	Example in Sentence
Associate with	I do not want to associate with my ex-classmate as he is not nice.
Deal with	He doesn’t know how to deal with his finances. He needs help.
Refer to	Please use my name when referring to me.
Specialise in	I specialise in mechanics.
Rely on	They rely on AI too much to do their work.
Suffer from	I suffer from terrible hay fever in spring.
Worry about	Don’t worry about it. You didn’t do it on purpose.
Marvel at	The English students marvelled at how many compound nouns there were in English; they couldn’t believe it.
Glance at	He glanced at his homework and decided not to do it.
Dream about	I dreamt about my horse.

Note: 1. The Phrasal Verbs (Verb + Preposition or Adverb – with a special meaning) is a sub-type of Verb Collocations. 2. Idiomatic Expressions too comes under Collocations eg: Hit the books (study hard).

List of Some Common Collocations

Collocations	Example Sentence
Break a glass	He accidentally broke a glass while doing the dishes.
Break a leg	Good luck on stage tonight—break a leg!
Break a neck	He almost broke his neck falling off the ladder.
Break a promise	She broke a promise to her best friend.
Break a record	The athlete broke a record in the 100m sprint.
Break free	The prisoner managed to break free from custody.
Break the ice	He told a joke to break the ice at the meeting.
Break the law	Speeding like that means you’re breaking the law.
Break the rules	If you break the rules, you could be disqualified.
Catch a bus	Hurry or you’ll miss it—catch the bus!
Catch a chill	Don’t go out in the cold, you’ll catch a chill.
Catch a cold	He caught a cold last weekend.
Catch a glimpse	I caught a glimpse of her in the crowd.
Catch a theif	The police caught the thief red-handed.
Catch a train	Let’s catch a train to the city.
Catch fire	The building caught fire suddenly.
Catch one’s breath	He paused to catch his breath after running.
Catch someone’s attention	Her red dress caught everyone’s attention.
Catch someone’s eye	He caught her eye across the room.
Catch the ball	Can you catch the ball if I throw it?
Catch the flu	I think I’ve caught the flu again.
Come close	We came close to winning the championship.
Come early	Please come early tomorrow.
Come in first	He came in first in the race.
Come in last	Unfortunately, I came in last.
Come into view	The mountains slowly came into view.
Come late	You always come late to class.
Come on time	Try to come on time next time.
Come to an agreement	After much discussion, they came to an agreement.
Do an exercise	She needs to do an exercise in her textbook.
Do an experiment	The students did an experiment in chemistry.
Do good	They want to do good for the community.
Do nothing	I’ll just do nothing this weekend.
Do some work	He needs to do some work before dinner.
Do someone a favour	Could you do me a favour?
Do something right	You finally did something right!
Do something wrong	Don’t worry, we all do something wrong sometimes.
Do the dishes	I’ll do the dishes after dinner.
Do your best	Just do your best, that’s all I ask.
Do your hair	She needs time to do her hair.
Get a Job	He finally got a job in marketing.
Get a life	Grow up and get a life!
Get angry	She got angry over the comment.
Get excited	The kids got excited about the trip.
Get Fired	He got fired for being late.
Get Home	We got home late last night.
Get lost	I think we’re lost—let’s get lost in the city for fun.
Get Permission	She got permission to leave early.
Get Started	Let’s get started on the project.
Get the message	Did you get the message I sent?
Get the phone	I’ll get the phone, it’s ringing!
Get the Picture	I finally got the picture—now I understand.
Go abroad	I plan to go abroad next summer.
Go bald	He started to go bald at 30.
Go crazy	She’s going to go crazy when she sees this.
Go on a trip	We’re planning to go on a trip next weekend.
Have a chat	Let’s have a chat over coffee.
Have a dream	I had a dream about flying.
Have a feeling	I have a feeling it’ll rain today.
Have a good time	We all had a good time at the party.
Have a look	Have a look at this article.
Have a rest	I’m tired—can I have a rest?
Have an experience	She had an amazing experience while traveling.
Have fun	Let’s have fun at the festival!
Have lunch	Want to have lunch together?
Have sympathy	I have sympathy for his situation.
Keep in mind	Please keep in mind what I said.
Keep in touch	Let’s keep in touch after the project.
Keep posted	I’ll keep you posted with updates.
Keep safe	Stay indoors and keep safe!
Keep somethig at bay	Meditation helps me keep stress at bay.
Keep tabs on	Parents often keep tabs on their kids.
Keep track of	Can you keep track of the time?
Keep up	You’re doing great—keep up!
Keep up the good work	Your work is amazing—keep up the good work!
lose a game	They lost the game in the last minute.
lose a job	He lost his job during the recession.
lose control	Don’t lose control in tough times.
lose hope	Many people lose hope after failure.
lose interest	He quickly lost interest in the project.
lose money	We lost a lot of money last year.
lose touch	I’ve lost touch with my old classmates.
lose weight	She’s been trying to lose weight for summer.
lose your temper	Don’t lose your temper, stay calm.
lose your way	We lost our way in the forest.
Make a mess	The kids made a mess in the kitchen.
Make a noise	Please don’t make a noise—the baby’s sleeping.
Make a phone call	I need to make a phone call.
Make a point	She made a good point during the meeting.
Make a profit	The company made a big profit last quarter.
Make a promise	He made a promise to stay honest.
Make an appointment	I need to make an appointment with the dentist.
Make an excuse	Don’t make an excuse, just tell the truth.
Make breakfast	I’ll make breakfast today.
Make furniture	He knows how to make furniture by hand.
Make progress	You’ve really made progress lately.
Make sense	That doesn’t make sense to me.
Make the bed	I made the bed this morning.
Make trouble	They always make trouble at school.
miss a call	Sorry, I missed your call.
miss a chance	Don’t miss your chance to apply.
miss a class	He missed class again today.
miss a deadline	I almost missed the deadline.
miss an opportunity	She missed an opportunity to shine.
miss someone	I miss someone every day.
miss the bus/train	We missed the bus, now we’re late.
miss the mark	The joke really missed the mark.
miss the point	I think you missed the point.
miss the target	The arrow missed the target by inches.
Pay a bill	I need to pay a bill today.
Pay a compliment	He paid me a compliment on my outfit.
Pay a visit	Let’s pay a visit to Grandma.
Pay attention	Please pay attention in class.
Pay one’s respect	We came to pay our respects at the funeral.
Save a seat	I’ll save you a seat.
Save a short	Remember to save a short version of the file.
Save data	Don’t forget to save your data often.
Save energy	These bulbs save energy.
Save lives	The firefighter saved many lives.
Save money	I’m trying to save money this year.
Save someone’s life	The doctor saved his life just in time.
Save space	We need to save space in the storage.
Save time	This tool can save time on tasks.
take a break	Let’s take a break.
take a chance	I decided to take a chance.
take a look	Take a look at this!
take a photo	She took a photo of the sunset.
take a seat	Please take a seat.
take action	We need to take action immediately.
take medicine	You should take your medicine twice a day.
take notes	I always take notes during class.
take responsibility	It’s time to take responsibility.
take your time	Take your time, there’s no rush.