B1–B2 Grammar Vocabulary

English Collocations: Words That Go Together

Collocations are word combinations that native speakers use naturally — do homework, make a mistake, take a photo. Learning them is one of the fastest ways to sound fluent and confident in English.

A collocation is a pair or group of words that frequently appear together and sound natural to native speakers. The words “do” and “homework” collocate strongly — you do homework, you never make homework, even though both verbs can mean producing or completing something. Understanding collocations will make your English sound more natural and help you avoid some of the most common errors intermediate learners make.

Collocations are not idioms. An idiom has a meaning that cannot be guessed from its parts (it’s raining cats and dogs). A collocation simply describes words that prefer each other’s company: heavy rain, fast food, take a break. You can usually understand them individually, but you need to memorise which words partner each other.

Why Collocations Matter

Native speakers do not choose words one by one and then assemble them. Instead, they recall ready-made chunks — collocations, fixed phrases, and idioms — which speeds up both production and comprehension. When you learn make a decision as a unit rather than separately learning “make” and “decision”, you store the combination in long-term memory and retrieve it effortlessly.

For IELTS and Cambridge exams, incorrect collocations are penalised under lexical resource. A Band 7 or C1 writer uses collocations accurately and flexibly. For everyday fluency, good collocations make you sound educated and natural rather than translated.

Key principle: When you learn a new noun, always learn the verbs and adjectives that go with it. Don’t just learn decision — learn make a decision, reach a decision, take a decision, and tough decision.

Types of Collocation

Collocations come in several grammatical patterns. Knowing the pattern helps you predict and remember which combinations are possible.

Pattern Examples Notes
Verb + Noun make a mistake, do homework, take a photo, give advice The most common type; hardest for learners because different languages use different verbs
Adjective + Noun heavy traffic, strong coffee, deep sleep, bright idea Often not translatable word-for-word; must be memorised as pairs
Adverb + Adjective deeply sorry, highly unlikely, perfectly normal, absolutely certain Common in academic and formal writing; the adverb “very” is often weak here
Noun + Noun traffic jam, air pollution, business trip, coffee break Many are compound nouns; stress usually falls on the first noun
Verb + Adverb sleep soundly, work hard, argue strongly, apologise sincerely The adverb strengthens or nuances the verb’s meaning
Verb + Preposition (+ Noun) depend on, consist of, result in, deal with Often called phrasal verb collocations; the preposition is fixed

Do, Make, Have and Take — The Big Four

The four verbs do, make, have and take carry much of the collocation load in everyday English. They are all high-frequency and they overlap in meaning, which makes them a major source of errors. The rules below are general guides; exceptions exist, so always check a good collocation dictionary.

DO — activities, duties, work in general

Use do when referring to jobs, tasks, activities (especially repeated ones), and general work:

MAKE — creating, producing, causing

Use make when something new results from the action, or for communication and mental processes:

HAVE — experiences and states

Use have for experiences, meals, conversations, and states of possession or feeling:

TAKE — actions requiring effort or time

Use take for actions involving movement, capturing, consuming, or receiving:

Common error: Learners often say do a mistake or make homework. Remember: you make a mistake and you do homework. The same logic separates make a decision (you produce a new outcome) from do your duty (you carry out a task).

Adjective–Noun Collocations

English adjectives do not pair freely with every noun. You say heavy rain but not strong rain; you say strong wind but not heavy wind. This asymmetry is the core challenge of adjective collocations.

Adjective Correct collocations Incorrect (avoid)
heavy heavy rain, heavy traffic, heavy workload, heavy smoker strong rain, big traffic
strong strong wind, strong coffee, strong accent, strong argument heavy wind, big coffee
deep deep sleep, deep breath, deep thought, deep blue big sleep, strong thought
bright bright idea, bright light, bright future, bright student intelligent idea, smart light
high / low high temperature, high risk, low income, low priority big temperature, small income

Adverb–Adjective Collocations

Instead of always using very, native speakers use specific adverbs that collocate with particular adjectives. These combinations are especially common in writing, presentations and formal speech.

Note that many of these adverbs do not pair with every adjective. You can say bitterly cold but not bitterly hot; deeply sorry but not deeply happy. Always check the collocation when you are unsure.

Collocations with Common Nouns

Some nouns attract many collocations. Learning these word families accelerates vocabulary growth significantly.

Time

spend time, waste time, save time, run out of time, kill time, take time, find time, spare time

Money

earn money, spend money, save money, waste money, owe money, raise money, lose money, invest money

Decision

make a decision, reach a decision, take a decision (formal), come to a decision, reverse a decision, stand by a decision

Problem

solve a problem, face a problem, deal with a problem, cause a problem, tackle a problem, address a problem, raise a problem

Study tip: When you look up a word in a dictionary, check the example sentences carefully. Good dictionaries (such as the Cambridge Advanced Learner’s Dictionary or Macmillan) highlight collocations in bold. Keep a collocation notebook organised by topic or key noun.

Strong vs Weak Collocations

Collocations exist on a spectrum from free combinations (almost any pairing is possible) to fixed expressions (only one word will do). Most collocations fall in between and are called restricted collocations.

Understanding this spectrum helps you decide when to use a collocation dictionary and when ordinary substitution is safe.

Practice Exercises

Grammar Quiz

Choose the correct collocation from multiple options in context.

Matching Pairs

Match verbs with their correct noun partners: do, make, have, take.

Cloze Dropdown

Select the correct collocation to complete each gap in the passage.

Flash Cards

Drill collocations as chunks — verb + noun, adjective + noun and more.

Complete the Sentence

Type or select the missing word to form a correct collocation.

Unjumble

Reorder scrambled words into natural-sounding collocation sentences.

For a detailed deep-dive with topic-based collocation lists, see the blog article: English Collocations Guide: Words That Go Together.

Build Your Collocation Bank

LexFizz has 30 free interactive exercises — no sign-up needed. Start practising collocations today.

Browse All Exercises →

Explore related grammar and vocabulary topics:

All Grammar Topics Phrasal Verbs Adjectives Adverbs Word Order Discourse Markers

Frequently Asked Questions

What is a collocation in English?
A collocation is a combination of words that frequently occur together and sound natural to native speakers. For example, make a decision is a strong collocation because native speakers almost always use “make” with “decision” rather than “do” or “take”. Collocations are not idioms — their meaning is usually transparent — but the exact word pairing must be memorised because alternatives sound unnatural or wrong.
What is the difference between a collocation and an idiom?
An idiom has a figurative meaning that cannot be guessed from the individual words: kick the bucket means to die, not to literally kick a bucket. A collocation is a conventional word pairing whose meaning is transparent but whose exact form is fixed by usage: heavy rain (not strong rain), do homework (not make homework). Both need to be memorised, but for different reasons: idioms because of hidden meaning, collocations because of restricted word choice.
What is the difference between ‘do’ and ‘make’ in collocations?
This is one of the most common areas of confusion. As a general rule, use do for activities, tasks and duties: do homework, do the dishes, do research, do someone a favour. Use make when something is created, produced or caused: make a mistake, make a decision, make a phone call, make a mess, make progress. Unfortunately, exceptions exist and some collocations must simply be memorised: make an effort, do your best.
Why do English learners find collocations difficult?
Collocations are difficult because they do not follow predictable grammar rules — they are determined by usage convention rather than logic. The challenge is especially acute because different languages parcel out meaning differently. A Spanish learner might say do a mistake because the Spanish verb hacer covers both “do” and “make”. A French learner might say strong rain because French uses forte (strong) rather than heavy. Native-speaker intuition is built through years of exposure; learners must build it consciously through deliberate study and extensive reading.
What are the main types of collocation?
The six main collocation patterns are: (1) Verb + Noun: take a photo, give advice; (2) Adjective + Noun: heavy traffic, strong coffee; (3) Adverb + Adjective: deeply sorry, highly unlikely; (4) Noun + Noun: traffic jam, business trip; (5) Verb + Adverb: sleep soundly, work hard; (6) Verb + Preposition: depend on, result in. Verb + Noun collocations are the most important for intermediate learners because errors there are most noticeable.
How can I remember English collocations more easily?
The most effective strategies are: (1) Learn collocations as chunks, not individual words — store make a decision as a single unit. (2) Use a collocation notebook organised by topic (travel, business, health) or key noun. (3) Read extensively in English — novels, newspapers, articles — and notice recurring word pairs. (4) Use a dedicated collocation dictionary such as the Oxford Collocations Dictionary. (5) Practise with exercises that test collocations in context, such as fill-in-the-blank and matching tasks. (6) Revisit your notes using spaced repetition flashcards.
Do collocations matter for IELTS and Cambridge exams?
Yes, significantly. In IELTS, the Lexical Resource criterion explicitly rewards the use of collocations accurately and flexibly. Examiners look for whether you can use a range of vocabulary including collocations, rather than relying on basic or repeated words. In Cambridge exams (B2 First, C1 Advanced), collocation errors in the Writing and Speaking papers reduce your marks for vocabulary. Using strong collocations like heavily reliant on, strongly suggest, or deeply concerned about can help push a score from Band 6 to Band 7 in IELTS, or from a B to an A in Cambridge.
What is the difference between a strong and a weak collocation?
A strong (restricted) collocation allows very few alternatives: you make a mistake (not do or create), you have heavy rain (not strong or big rain). A weak (free) collocation allows many alternatives without sounding unnatural: eat slowly / eat quickly / eat carefully / eat hungrily are all perfectly fine. Most collocation learning focuses on strong collocations because those are where errors cause the most damage to naturalness and exam scores.
Are collocations the same in British and American English?
Most collocations are shared across varieties of English, but some differences exist. British English: do the washing up; American English: do the dishes. British: at the weekend; American: on the weekend. British: have a row (argument); American: have a fight. These differences are primarily in everyday vocabulary collocations. Academic and formal collocations are almost entirely shared across varieties and are safe to use in any English-speaking context.
What are some essential B1–B2 collocations every learner should know?
Key B1–B2 collocations include: do homework / research / someone a favour / well; make a mistake / decision / progress / effort / suggestion / phone call; have a conversation / meeting / argument / good time / problem; take a photo / break / exam / notes / responsibility; heavy traffic / rain / workload; strong opinion / coffee / accent / argument; deeply sorry / concerned; highly recommend / unlikely; spend / waste / save time or money; solve / face / deal with a problem. Mastering these alone will make a noticeable difference to your fluency.