January 04, 2010

Collocations in English

There are aspects that we (non English native speakers) must work harder to master. Collocations proper usage is one of them. But why is it important? Nowadays there are more people around the globe able to speak or write in English but few of them manage to demonstrate the real taste of English. However, by using collocations our English will sound real, authentic and natural. In short, our English looks more similar to native speakers' English.


Sadly, mastering collocations does take a long time, great patience and consistency. If you are an impatient type of person who likes to ask "What is the easiest way to master collocations?", you'd better leave this blog because I cannot promise some fixed universal rules to memorize. In fact, there is no such thing in learning a language. There are rules yet at the same time there are always some exceptions to follow. Forget about one-size-fits-all patterns because a language isn't merely a series of regular phenomena.

So what is collocation anyway?
Collocation is the way in which some words are often used together, or a particular combination of words used in this way (Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English).


Give examples please?
Collocations are used in nearly all occasions and situations. Some of the frequently used and heard collocations are:
  • commit a crime NOT do a crime / make a crime
  • heavy rain NOT strong rain
  • take/have a bath NOT do a bath
  • make mistake NOT do mistake
  • make an effort NOT do an effort
  • tell/make/crack a joke NOT say a joke
  • bitterly ashamed/ disappointed/ cold NOT bitterly successful
  • highly successful/accomplished/controversial NOT highly divided/highly grateful
  • deeply concerned/ divided/ grateful/ unpopular NOT deeply developed
As I said earlier, to predict which word will be used with a certain word is almost unfeasible because collocations are based on people's convention/ agreement ('people' here refers to the society that creates, develops, and owns a given language). 
 
It is also important to note that it is NOT about wrong or right but how all English speakers USUALLY use a language in real everyday situation. We of course can create some new collocations ouselves but the problem is: will other people (especially native speakers of English) understand what we mean?

1 comment:

  1. all about naturally,right?speak just like th natives do. how bout slang?is it important?i read a book bout a french who is already studying english for years but hard to undertand what an american's fren said.what is ur opinion bout this fact?lookin forward to . . . . . . soon

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