Understanding Collocations and their Importance in the IELTS Exam

Collocations generally refer to words or phrases that are commonly positioned together and represent specific meanings. It comes naturally to those who are native English speakers. For scoring a good band in the IELTS test a reasonable vocabulary is a must. Collocations are considered to be an essential element of vocabulary, required for fluent communication and language proficiency.

Students are often confused about combining words whether they do go or do not go together. Appropriate usage of collocations is crucial to boosting your IELTS score, especially in IELTS Writing and IELTS Speaking. Using collocations precisely will allow the examiner to comprehend your language ability better when marking your test.

Why learn Collocations?

There are various definitions of collocation. These collocations can be divided into two groups: grammatical collocations and lexical collocations. The usage of relevant collocations improves the IELTS score to a great extent. One need not learn a long list of collocations to be proficient, but there are certain rules that you need to apply to use them correctly. Collocations help bring natural flow to the language. Understanding the right combination of words that make sense is crucial to scoring great in both IELTS Writing as well as IELTS Speaking. It saves time and is always beneficial to learn using collocations to have a rich vocabulary for IELTS.

Benefits of Using Collocations in IELTS

A very simple benefit of using collocations is to avoid making mistakes in choosing the right words. Having said that, it is highly important to use the right words as the use of certain words in English tends to have different meanings in different situations, and sometimes it varies geographically as well.

1. Choice of Words

Incorrect choice of words is one the the most common dangers for English learners.
Learning collocations can help you reduce errors or completely avoid them. For example, instead of ‘Powerful Tea’, it is more suitable to use ‘Strong Tea’.

2. Practice Precision.

The use of perfect integration of words to create a meaningful sentence is what collocations are all about. That is because words when put together, not only sound accomplished, but they also have a pleasing impact overall, on readers along with listeners.

For example:

“It was the music that cheered the crowd”

Vs

“It was the fantastic music that cheered the crowd”

Now simply adding the word ‘fantastic’ before music completely changed the impact of the sentence, while adding more stimulation to the communication.

Types of Collocations For IELTS with Examples

Patterns of collocations are important to learn. That makes it easier for you to build and apply a comprehensive vocabulary.

Verb + Noun

• The child killed a bird with a stone.
• We leaders made peace to stop the war.
• He finished homework in school to save time.

Verb + Adverb

• Senior citizens were severely hurt in the road accident.
• People were clearly surprised by the government’s decision.
• Despite being angry he spoke softly to the offenders.

Adjective + Adverb

• The room was ridiculously small to fit all.
• They were absolutely amazed by her new looks.
• The chairman’s decision was strongly opposed by the committee members.

Noun + Adjective

• He made a terrible mistake in his exam paper.
• He suffered excruciating pain while running without shoes.
• The city was covered by thick fog.

Noun + Noun

• She drinks chocolate milk every morning.
• He hid the money in the kitchen cabinet.
• They brought fresh cookies for everyone.

Studying Collocations

There are several methods to study collocations that you can try, depending on your goals.

• Reading is one of the smartest ways to learn collocations. It could be done by reading a variety of materials such as books, news articles, and reports.
• Listen to native speakers with different accents. Pay attention to their style of communication, and how effectively they use collocations. Watching English movies, and television shows, and listening to Podcasts help you practice for IELTS listening and learn collocations.
• A collocation dictionary can be a promising resource to learn collocations perfectly and thus build confidence. Practicing collocation exercises in various contexts will benefit a lot for IELTS preparation.
• Maintain a book of collocations that you come across in day-to-day life and then learn to utilize them appropriately. You can always take feedback from teachers and native speakers.
• Last but not least, the more you practice, the better you become.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

At times, even the experts in the English language tend to make mistakes with collocations. However, understanding these common mistakes can help you avoid them and score well.

Wrong Use of Verbs: Pairing verbs appropriately is key to using collocations effectively.

For Example: “I am going to take a fast shower” seems grammatically inappropriate. The correct verb choice should be, “I am going to take a quick shower”

Wrong Use of Preposition: A very significant part of speech in collocations is prepositions. The wrong use of it can lead to misinterpretation.

For Example: “He agreed with my decision”, may be acceptable but it too is grammatically incorrect. The appropriate proposition in this case is ‘to’ instead of ‘with.’ Hence the correct sentence should be “He agreed to my decision”.

Idioms: One should avoid using Idioms in the IELTS writing test, although using them in IELTS Speaking is acceptable.

Contractions: Using contractions instead of proper words is considered informal, and can be misread if not used relatively.

Avoid Using Basic Words: When using collocations in IELTS, always prefer advanced synonyms that can help you score better. Using basic words may not be incorrect, but do not fulfill the IELTS criteria for lexical resources.

FAQs

We hope you found this article helpful in your journey to prepare for the IELTS. The tips and strategies we shared are designed to make your test-taking experience smoother and more effective. Remember, mastering time management and pacing can make a big difference in your IELTS score.

If you liked what you read here, be sure to check out our other articles. We’ve got a bunch of resources and guides that can help you get even more prepared for the IELTS. From subject-specific strategies to general study tips, we’re here to support you every step of the way. Good luck with your IELTS prep, and remember, you’ve got this!