Why Individual Words Aren't Enough
Types of Collocations to Teach
Verb + Noun
Make/do/take/have are the most problematic: make a mistake, do homework, take a break, have dinner. These patterns differ dramatically across languages and must be learned explicitly.
Adjective + Noun
Heavy rain (not *strong rain), fast food (not *quick food), strong wind (not *heavy wind). These seem arbitrary but follow patterns: 'heavy' collocates with precipitation and traffic, 'strong' with wind and feelings.
Functional Chunks
'I was wondering if...', 'Do you mind if I...', 'The thing is...', 'As far as I know...' These fixed expressions serve specific discourse functions and should be taught as whole units, not decomposed into grammar.
Teacher Tip
“Before teaching collocations explicitly, develop students' noticing skills. When reading a text, ask: 'What verb goes with mistake — do we make, do, or take a mistake?' When students look up a new word, train them to also note what words surround it. Dictionaries like Oxford Collocations Dictionary list the most most common partners for every entry. Over time, students develop collocation radar — they start noticing word partnerships automatically.”
Frequently Asked Questions
What are collocations in English?
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Collocations are word combinations that naturally go together in English: 'make a decision' (not *do a decision), 'heavy rain' (not *strong rain). They're not grammatically required — 'do a decision' is grammatically possible but sounds wrong to native ears. Collocations must be learned as partnerships.
How do I teach collocations to ESL students?
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Teach vocabulary in partnerships, not in isolation. When teaching 'decision', immediately teach 'make a decision', 'a difficult decision', 'come to a decision'. Use matching exercises (verb + noun pairings), collocation dominoes, and gap-fill exercises from authentic texts. DrillKit generates vocabulary exercises that naturally include collocational context.
When should I start teaching collocations?
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From A2, though students won't use the term 'collocation'. At A2, teach high-frequency verb + noun patterns (make/do/take/have). At B1, introduce adjective + noun collocations and common functional chunks. At B2+, develop systematic collocation learning strategies using dictionaries and corpora.