Collocations

‘To be or not to be’ is always tough to decide!

Read the following passage on decision-making and pay attention to the highlighted words.

Some of us think making a decision is tough. We need to consider the pros and cons related
to the issue, also, think about the advantages and disadvantages and then carefully consider
all the options available before us. Many experts tell us it is important to trust our intuition
but ultimately we need to make a choice after analyzing all possibilities. Some are really
tough decisions, which can be handled by asking for advice from friends or families. A good
friend can always be helpful. Discussing the problem in depth can help us think of choices.
Some of us are good at making snap decisions, which are taken at the spur of the moment.
But most of us are scared to make costly mistakes as they can lead to negative consequences.
Having second thoughts at the last minute is also usual. Keeping your options open for long
can leave you undecided. Developing sound judgment to make wise decisions is a vital life
skill.

The pair words occur together frequently in the natural use of the English language. Such words
that usually occur together are called collocations. In other words, certain words collocate
naturally with particular words. Knowing them can be greatly helpful in improving both our
written and spoken skills in English.

There are different types of collocations based on the word form. Certain nouns collocate only
with particular adjectives. The same is true with verb and adverbs when they collocate with
nouns and adjectives. Based on this premise here are the various combinations possible with
reference to collocations.

noun + verb: monkeys chatter (NOT monkeys talk or shout)

adverb + adjective: fully convinced (NOT downright convinced)

adjective + noun: quick shower (NOT fast shower)

noun + noun: a bunch of grapes (NOT a group of grapes)

verb + noun: make an error (NOT do an error)

verb + adverb: whisper softly (NOT whisper quietly)

Collocations that are used often are:

 a favor
busines
s housewor
nothing k
your
hair
the d
damag
best o e

shopping good

the a good
dishes job

Alankrita - Kindly create similar graphics, like the one given above, for the following
collocations

Make - a difference, a mess, a mistake, a noise, an effort, money, progress, room, friends, sense,
trouble

Have – A chat, a good time, a bath, a drink, a haircut, a holiday, a problem, a relationship,
lunch, sympathy, a nap, a chance,

Break - the law, a leg, a promise, a record, someone's heart, the ice, the news to someone, the
rules

Take - a break, a chance, a look, a rest, a seat, a taxi, an exam, notes, someone's place,

Catch - the bus, a ball, a cold, a thief, fire, sight of, someone's attention, someone's eye, the flu,

Pay – respect, a fine, attention, by credit card, cash, interest, someone a visit, the bill, the price,
your respects

Keep - the change, a promise, a secret, an appointment, calm, in touch, quiet, someone's place

Save - yourself the trouble, electricity, energy, money, someone a seat, someone's life,
something to a disk, time, space

Go - bald, abroad, astray, bad, bankrupt, blind, crazy, fishing, on foot, yellow, mad, missing,
online, out of business, overseas, quiet, sailing, to war,

Come - under attack, close, direct, early, first, into view, last, late, on time, prepared, right back,
to a decision, to an agreement, to an end, to a standstill, to terms with, to a total of,
Get - the sack, the message, a life, a job, a shock, angry, divorced, drunk, frightened, home, lost,
married, permission, ready, started, the impression, upset, wet, worried

Exercise 1

Here are a few passages on different themes. Identify and underline the word pairs which you
think could be collocations:

Character

As a child I remember that I was excessively

shy but had a vivid imagination. My brother,
on the other hand, was an outgoing
personality and had high self esteem. We
would play pranks on each other but never
bore a grudge. He also taught me how to
come out of my shell and speak my mind. I
had a tendency to be quiet most of the time
and people thought I was unnecessarily
arrogant.

Work

Even though some people have a great job

with a competitive salary they are always on
the lookout for a career change.
Contrastingly, others have a heavy workload
and a demanding job but they might be
working for minimum wages . Job
descriptions need to be carefully considered
before applying for a position . It is
extremely difficult to find a job that is a well
paid and rewarding. In order to earn a living,
most job seekers take up menial jobs
 Money

Making or earning money is a skill but

some people inherit a fortune. Though
many of us make a budget at the beginning
of every month, it is very difficult to stick
to the budget. We end up borrowing money
and plan to pay it back in installments.
Some people raise money for donating and
some set aside money for other purposes.
Some financial savvy persons keep
emergency funds expecting tough
situations.

Exercise 2

Given below are some collocations of time. Write a passage similar to the one at the beginning
of this chapter using at least five collocations.

free time from dawn till dusk great deal of time bang on time early/late 20th
century
make time for next few days past few weeks right on time run out of time
time goes by time passes waste time from dawn till dusk save time spare time
spend some time take your time tell someone the time

Write your answer here:

______________________________________________________________________________
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Exercise 3

Find below an excerpt from a debate between two leaders of different parties. They are
discussing certain issues and their promises to solve them.
 endangered irreparable shelters line shortages climate
alleviating polluting margins global disadvantaged hunger clean
welfare attention

A: I’m very glad to meet you all today. All of us know that _____alleviating________ poverty is
the need of the hour. Many of our citizens hailing from ____disadvantaged_______ backgrounds
are living below the poverty ___line_______. Though there are a number of ___welfare_____
programs that have been already devised, many still have no access to basic amenities.

B: I hope all of you will agree that Mr. A is bothered only about the disadvantaged people.
Simply opening free ___shelters______ for the homeless will not solve all the problems of
people living in the ____margins_____ of society. More focus has to be given in investing in
_____ clean ____ energy so that we can reduce __polluting_____ the environment.

A: Environmental problems have always been there, but human beings need our immediate
_______attention________. People who are starving of _____hunger______ cannot worry about
_____endangered________ species or _____global__________ warming. The
____irreparable_____damage done to the environment needs larger policies. I will focus more
on reducing poverty.

B: Mr. A refuses to see the connection between both the issues. It is only because of our
environmental problems and ___climate_____ changes, the patterns of monsoons have become
irregular resulting in food ____shortage_____.

Exercise 4

1. I was irritated when she was asking such stupid questions. It was a sheer ______ of time.

Abuse

Waste

Lose

Break

2. The boy was immediately taken to the clinic, as it was a very __________ cut.

Heavy

Hard

Wide

Deep
3. He told the police that he didn’t know much about Sita, because she was only a __________
acquaintance.

Long

Casual

Serious

Known

4. There is no need to enquire him because all of us know that he is an innocent and _________
citizen.

Lawful

Lawless

Law-abiding

Law-respecting

5. The teacher said, “John, your answer is __________ correct.”

Absolutely

Completely

Much

Beautifully

6. Everyone enjoys a __________ drive along the countryside.

Short

Long

Quick

Fast

7. Anish is one of our promising stars in the ______ fire pistol sport.

Fast

Rapid

Slow
Distant

8. Gandhiji was a great philanthropic soul in the _________ sense of the term.

Correct

Full

True

Good

9. Argentina is one of the ______ teams in the world soccer arena.

Lightweight

Heavyweight

Featherweight

Heavyload

10. Though he was highly talented, he was hated for his _______ behavior towards women.

Polished

Rude

Suave

Good

JOAVANI TO CREATE 3 MORE SETS OF EXERCISES FOR THIS UNIT