Collocations

 Some examples from your writings:

GRADE:

MARK:

Online resources you can use:

Online Oxford collocation dictionary: https://www.freecollocation.com/search?word=Mark

Online Macmillan dictionary: https://www.macmillandictionary.com/dictionary/british/exam

Collocations of ADV+ADJ (Intelligence/ ability)

gifted adj.

VERBS be

ADV. exceptionally, extremely, highly, immensely, prodigiously, supremely, very | undeniably | naturally a naturally gifted sportswoman | uniquely | precociously | academically, athletically, intellectually, musically academically gifted children

PREP. at He's very gifted at maths. | in gifted in the art of healing | with Their helpers are gifted with amazing powers of patience.

talented adj.

VERBS be, seem, sound

ADV. exceptionally, extraordinarily, extremely, highly, hugely, immensely, incredibly, outstandingly, really, supremely, truly, very an extraordinarily talented designer Some of these young musicians are hugely talented. | not particularly | quite | precociously a precociously talented youngster | artistically, musically

promising adj.

VERBS be, look, seem, sound

ADV. extremely, highly, particularly, very | hardly The outlook is hardly promising. | quite

source: Online OXFORD Collocation Dictionary

English collocations in use

Correction of TEST 1: Reading and Use of English

Part 1: Multitasking children

Collocations:

0. damage verb

ADV. badly, seriously, severely The building was badly damaged by fire. | slightly | irreparably, permanently She may have damaged her health irreparably. 

7. increase verb
ADV. considerably, dramatically, enormously, greatly, significantly, substantially | slightly | gradually | rapidly, sharply, steeply | steadily | twofold, threefold, etc. Sales increased almost fourfold in this period.
VERB + INCREASE be expected to, be likely to Demand is expected to increase over the next decade.
PREP. by The budget has increased by more than a third in the last year. | from, in to increase in amount/number/price/size | to Last month the reward was increased from £20,000 to £40,000. | with Disability increases with age.


 

Journey collocations

journey noun 
 
ADJ. + JOURNEY: 

long, marathon |

brief, short | outward (:away from home) The date of your outward journey is 16th April.

homeward, return | 
onward The bus driver told us where to change buses for our onward journey. | bus, car, rail, railway, train, etc. | 
five-mile, four-hour, etc. |
comfortable, easy, good, pleasant, safe I hope you had a good journey. Have a safe journey. 
arduous, awkward, bad, difficult, gruelling, hard, tedious, terrible, tiring, tortuous | 
dangerous, hazardous, perilous | 
overland | 
cross-country | 
daily | 
overnight | 
epic an epic journey across Africa on foot | 
wasted The library was closed when I got there, so it was a wasted journey. | emotional, sentimental, spiritual He made the emotional journey back to the house he grew up in.

'Travel' as a noun and its collocations

travel noun 

 

ADJ. + TRAVEL:
air, bus, car, coach, rail, sea, train | 
foreign, international, overseas, world Foreign travel never really appealed to him until he retired.
long-distance | 
business | 
leisure | 
cheap, concessionary, free | 
first-class | 
high-speed | 
return | 
frequent The job involves frequent travel. | 
space, time 

TRAVEL + NOUN:
agency, business, company, firm, industry | 
arrangements, plans | 
allowance, costs, expenses | 
insurance | 
document, documentation | 
itinerary | 
time The new bypass will reduce travel time to the airport. | 
sickness | 
book, brochure, guide, writer

PREP.  
~ from, ~ to The price includes return rail travel from London Victoria to Dover.

http://oxforddictionary.so8848.com/search?word=travel 

Complaint

² illness

ADJ.  + COMPLAINT 

> mild, minor | 
> chronic | 
> common Not being able to sleep at night is a very common complaint. | 
> back, chest, etc. | 
> medical 
 

VERB + COMPLAINT  
> have, suffer from He has a minor skin complaint.

COLLOCATIONS

advise 

1. to give your opinion to someone about the best thing to do in a particular situation

I’m afraid I’m not able to advise you.

 

> advise someone to do something:

Her doctor advised her to rest.

Students are advised to read all the questions carefully.

 

> advise someone against something:

Police are advising the public against travelling in the fog.

 

> advise someone that:

The bank advised us that we should increase our insurance cover.

 

> advise that:

Experts advise that sunscreen should be reapplied on an hourly basis.

 

> strongly advise:

I strongly advise you to reject the offer.

recommend

1. to advise someone that they should do something

> recommend (that):

I recommend that you buy a more powerful computer.

 

> strongly recommend:

We strongly recommend you insure your luggage when you travel.

 

> recommend doing something:

We recommend booking early, as this is a popular event.

 

> recommend someone to do something:

Students are recommended to read the following books.

suggest

1.to offer an idea or a plan for someone to consider

The report suggested various ways in which the service could be improved.

 

>suggest (that):

I suggest we have dinner first, and then watch the film.

 

> suggest what/why/where etc:

Can anyone suggest what we should do to increase sales?

 

> suggest doing something:

If there is a mechanical problem, we suggest contacting the manufacturer directly.

> Suggest is never followed by a direct personal object. Use the preposition to:

✗ If this happened to one of your friends, what would you suggest her?

✓ If this happened to one of your friends, what would you suggest to her?

 

2. to tell someone about something that may be useful or suitable for a particular purpose

> suggest + noun

Can you suggest an inexpensive restaurant?

 

Collocations

VERB + CAREER 

> build, carve out, have, make, pursue He made a good career for himself in football. She pursued a successful career in medicine. 

> begin, embark on, launch, start (out on) young actors just starting out on their careers 
> boost 
> abandon, give up 
> cut short, end, ruin, wreck a car crash which wrecked his career 
> resume 
> change

Collocations

VERB + RELATIONSHIP  

> enjoy, have They enjoyed a close working relationship. The school has a very good relationship with the community. He had brief relationships with several women. | 

> begin, build (up), develop, establish, foster Building strong relationships is essential. They established a relationship of trust. | 

> cement, improve, strengthen | 

> continue, maintain | 

> handle, manage He's not very good at handling personal relationships. | 

> break off She broke off the relationship when she found out about his gambling.  

> destroy Lack of trust destroys many relationships.

Smell - collocations

http://oxforddictionary.so8848.com/search?word=smell

smell noun

ADJ. overpowering, pervasive, pungent, rich, sharp, strong There was an overpowering smell of burning tyres. | faint | distinct | distinctive, particular, unmistakable | funny, peculiar, strange, unusual What's that funny smell? | familiar | lingering | aromatic, delectable, delicious, fragrant, fresh, lovely, nice, savoury, sweet, wonderful the aromatic smells of a spring garden full of herbs| warm | appalling, awful, bad, evil, horrible, nasty, offensive, terrible, unpleasant, vile | acrid, nauseating, putrid, rank, sickly An acrid smell filled the air. | damp, dank, musty, rancid, sour, stale the sour smell of unwashed linen | earthy, fishy, masculine, metallic, musky, oily, smoky, spicy | cooking Cooking smells drifted up from the kitchen.

SMELL + VERB come, emanate, drift, float, waft A delicious smell of freshly baked bread wafted across the garden. | fill sth, hang | hit sb Then the pungent smell hit us?rotting fish and seaweed.VERB + SMELL be filled with, have The air was filled with a pervasive smell of chemicals. The cottage had a musty smell after being shut up over the winter. | give off The skunk gives off an unpleasant smell when attacked. | catch, detect As she walked into the house she detected the smell of gas.

PREP. ~ from the putrid smell from the slaughterhouse | ~ of The faint smell of her perfume hung in the air.

smell verb

¹ notice/identify sth by using your nose

ADV. properly, well I had a streaming cold, so I could not smell properly. | almost Snow fell so that you could almost smell the cold.

VERB + SMELL can/could

² have a particular smell

ADV. strongly His clothes smelled strongly of fish. | faintly, slightly, vaguely He smelled faintly of sweat. | deliciously, pleasantly, sweetly

PREP. like It smells like rotten meat! | of The kitchen smelled sweetly of herbs and fruit.

You can also check Google Dictionary: smell (English, 中文解释 ), wordnet sense

Adverbs for emphasis: collocations of Adv+Adj

"Some adjectives are very often used with a particular adverb, and you need to learn these combinations. Here are a few useful ones:

• bitterly cold / disappointed

• highly likely / unlikely

• heavily pregnant

• blindingly obvious

• seriously ill / injured

• badly damaged"

For more information check the whole article: 
http://dictionaryblog.cambridge.org/2014/10/22/highly-delighted-bitterly-disappointed-ridiculously-cheap-adverbs-for-emphasis/

Progress test 3 CAE

Part 1. Multiple choice cloze

1. collocation: transmit + signal
VERB + SIGNAL  (³ series of radio waves, chemical messages, etc.)

• carry, pass The nerves carry these signals to the brain. | 
• convert (sth into), scramble, unscramble The signal is scrambled into code before it is sent. | 
• emit, generate, send, transmit | 
• detect, pick up, receive, respond to This equipment can detect very low frequency signals.
• Source: Oxford collocation dictionary

diffuse

1

1. [INTRANSITIVE/TRANSITIVE] if a gas or liquid diffuses through a substance, or if it is diffused, it spreads through it 

Light gases diffuse through porous surfaces more rapidly than heavy gases.

2

2. [INTRANSITIVE/TRANSITIVE] if light diffuses, or if something diffuses it, it shines over  large area but not very brightly

3. [TRANSITIVE] FORMAL to spread something such as information, ideas, or power among a large group of people

Collocations of DEEPEN

http://findwords.info/term/deepen