1.

A collocation is two or more words that

often go together
have similar meanings
must be used together

2. Collocations sound "right" to native English speakers because they

sound unnatural
are rarely used
are often used

3. If you learn and use many collocations, your English will sound

more unusual
more grammatical
more natural

4. Which is a very common collocation?

quick food
fast food
rapid food

5. Complete the collocation: "I was running late so I only had time for a _____
shower."

short
quick
fast

6. It's best for learners to think of collocations as being single

parts of speech
blocks of language
rules of grammar

7. Collocations can be divided into several types such as _________ collocations.

verb + noun
subject + object
first + second

8. Which is an example of a verb + noun collocation?

a terrible mistake
commonly mistaken
make a mistake

9. Complete with a verb + adverb collocation: "You'll do it if you ________ enough."

try hard
really try
want to

10. Which is a common adverb + adjective collocation?

richly decorated
richly wealthy
greedily rich

1. action movie

In most action movies, there are lots of

a. loud explosions

b. beautiful costumes

c. romantic love scenes

Answer: a

2. happy ending

Which type of story almost always has a happy ending?

a. a romantic comedy

b. a black comedy

c. a tragedy

Answer: a

3. leading role

The person with the leading role in a movie is

a. a director

b. a writer

c. an actor

Answer: c

4. live music

If you want to see live music, you'll have to buy tickets to

a. a concert

b. a dance club

c. a music studio

Answer: a

5. murder mystery

Where could you see a murder mystery?

a. at a crime scene

b. in a courtroom

c. at a cinema

Answer: c

6. piece of music

A "piece of music" is

a. one single musical work

b. one section of a musical work

c. one instrument's part in the music

Answer: a

7. play music

At a concert, music is played by the people

a. in the audience

b. in the orchestra

c. organising the concert

Answer: b

8. rave review

The movie got a rave review because the critic

a. really liked it

b. really hated it

c. was angered by it

Answer: a

9. violent movie

Which are usually violent movies?

a. war movies

b. medical dramas

c. movies about sport

Answer: a

10. vocal music

Vocal music is any music that includes parts for

a. one or more singers

b. singers with instruments

c. singers without instruments

Collocations Quiz: Family

1. big brother | big sister

Big brothers are always

a. bigger than their little brothers

b. born before their little brothers

c. born after their little brothers

Answer: b

2. broken home

He said he was from a broken home because

a. his parents were no longer together

b. his father was still working overseas

c. his home was damaged in an earthquake

Answer: a

3. distant relative

Your distant relatives are those who

a. lived a very long time ago

b. live very far away from you

c. aren't closely related to you

Answer: c

4. get married

While getting married, they

a. had three children

b. went on a honeymoon

c. exchanged wedding vows

Answer: c

5. have a baby

Where do most American women have their babies?

a. in a hospital

b. in a playground

c. in a baby carriage

Answer: a

6. immediate family

Your immediate family includes

a. your brothers and sisters

b. your nephews and nieces

c. your uncles and aunts

Answer: a

7. little brother | little sister

Your little sisters aren't

a. as big as you

b. as old as you

c. as young as you

Answer: b

8. loved one

I asked about her loved ones, and she told me about

a. her family

b. her past lovers

c. what she loves to do

Answer: a

9. married couple

Three married couples are coming, so there'll be

a. six couples

b. three marriages

c. six different people

Answer: c

10. raise a family

If you're raising a family, you're

a. bringing up children

b. trying to have a child

c. helping a troubled family

Collocations Quiz: Feelings

1. bad mood

If someone's in a bad mood, they can easily

a. be bad

b. go crazy

c. get upset

Answer: c

2. bitterly disappointed

I was bitterly disappointed after failing because

a. I was sure I would pass

b. I didn't care if I failed

c. I knew I'd fail

Answer: a

3. get angry

Our boss gets really angry when

a. things go well

b. things go wrong

c. things go to plan

Answer: b

4. get upset

When children get upset, they

a. fall over

b. laugh

c. cry

Answer: c

5. hurt sb's feelings

We hurt Roberto's feelings when we laughed at

a. his bad jokes

b. his funny story

c. his new hairstyle

Answer: c

6. lose your temper

If you lose your temper, you should try to

a. find it

b. calm down

c. get even angrier

Answer: b

7. make sb feel sth

If I'm sad, watching a funny movie can make me feel

a. better

b. funny

c. more

Answer: a

8. mixed feelings

It was with mixed feelings that I agreed to do it. I wasn't sure if I

a. was able to feel it

b. was agreeing, or not

c. was doing the right thing

Answer: c

9. painfully shy

Because he was so painfully shy, Billy couldn't

a. help his mother

b. ride his bicycle

c. talk to strangers

Answer: c

10. quietly confident

Our coach is quietly confident. He thinks we

a. have a good chance

b. can't possibly win

c. can't possibly lose

Collocations Quiz: Relationships

1. best friends

If they're best friends, they must

a. have lots of close friends

b. like each other very much

c. be better than other friends

Answer: b

2. casual relationship

If you're in a casual relationship, you probably

a. love the other person

b. quite like the other person

c. can't stand the other person

Answer: b

3. fall in love

Sam has never fallen in love. He's never

a. been attracted to anyone

b. been crazy about anyone

c. been to bed with anyone

Answer: b

4. get back together

Shane and Liz are getting back together after

a. going away

b. having separated

c. being at work all day

Answer: b

5. go on a date

People usually go on dates

a. when they're at work

b. when they're at home

c. in their free time

Answer: c

6. make friends

You might find it hard to make friends if you're

a. talkative

b. friendly

c. shy

Answer: c

7. old friend

I've known most of my old friends

a. since last year

b. since childhood

c. since we got old

Answer: b

8. openly gay

If your friend is openly gay, he

a. lets people know he's gay

b. doesn't hide homosexuals

c. doesn't dislike gay people

Answer: a

9. steady relationship

Ben's not in a steady relationship because he prefers

a. long-term relationships

b. serious relationships

c. casual relationships

Answer: c

10. young couple

If they're a "young couple", it means

a. both of them are still quite young

b. their relationship has just begun

c. at least of one of them is young

Collocations Quiz: Time

1. find time

If you didn't find time to do something, you

a. didn't have time

b. didn't need time

c. didn't waste time

Answer: a

2. have time

She didn't have time for lunch because she

a. didn't know it was lunchtime

b. was too busy working

c. wasn't very hungry

Answer: b

3. kill time

We found a good way of killing time while we were

a. studying for our final exams

b. waiting for our flight to leave

c. seeing our favourite band play

Answer: b

4. long time

Which usually takes a long time?

a. reading a letter

b. writing a novel

c. seeing a movie

Answer: b

5. pass (the) time

I passed the time reading because I

a. had been reading really slowly

b. didn't have anything else to do

c. had forgotten what time it was

Answer: b

6. save time

You'll save time if you

a. set the alarm in your phone

b. do your banking online

c. play computer games

Answer: b

7. spare time

I'll have more spare time when

a. I get a second job

b. our next child is born

c. I can retire from work

Answer: c

8. spend time

Our best students spend their time

a. talking about exams

b. studying for exams

c. cheating in exams

Answer: b

9. take time

Recovering from this illness takes time, so you can

a. start work tomorrow

b. take another month off

c. never work again in your life

Answer: b

10. waste time

You're wasting your time if you're

a. not achieving anything

b. not taking your time

c. not spending time

Collocations Quiz: Travel

1. book a flight

If you "book a flight", you

a. take a book on a flight

b. reserve a seat on a plane

c. read about taking a flight

Answer: b

2. departure time

The ticket says the departure time is

a. ten-thirty a.m.

b. June the seventh

c. around four hours

Answer: a

3. direct flight

I prefer direct flights because they usually

a. fly much faster

b. don't fly as far

c. don't take as long

Answer: c

4. make a reservation

We couldn't make a reservation at the hotel because

a. all our rooms are full

b. it was fully-booked

c. the rooms are nice

Answer: b

5. miss a flight

I missed my flight, so I had to

a. run really fast to catch it

b. take the next one instead

c. ask someone where it was

Answer: b

6. non-stop flight

If you book a non-stop flight, you won't be able to

a. stop over on your way

b. stop your booking

c. stop your flight

Answer: a

7. pack a suitcase

If you're packing a suitcase, you're

a. putting it inside something

b. putting things inside it

c. carrying it with you

Answer: b

8. return flight

If you're on a return flight,

a. you're flying back to where you first flew from

b. you can return on another flight in the future

c. your flight's returning because of engine trouble

Answer: a

9. return ticket

I'm getting a return ticket because

a. they'll return my money if I don't go

b. I can return part of the ticket

c. I'm planning to return

Answer: c

10. travel light

If you're travelling light, you're travelling

a. in daylight hours

b. with very few bags

c. on a very cheap flight

Collocations Quiz: Work

1. apply for a job

If you've applied for a job, you're trying to

a. find someone to do it

b. do it better

c. get it

Answer: c

2. dead-end job

Most people who have dead-end jobs

a. really enjoy their work

b. can't get better work

c. earn lots of money

Answer: b

3. give notice

The workers were given notice when

a. they had to do some overtime

b. their wages were being reduced

c. they weren't needed any more

Answer: c

4. heavy workload

Wendy had a heavy workload, so she

a. asked us to lift it

b. asked us to help her

c. asked for more work

Answer: b

5. lose a job

After losing my job, I

a. tried to find another one

b. tried to find it again

c. tried to do it again

Answer: a

6. make a living

People don't need to make a living if they're already

a. very creative

b. very wealthy

c. very healthy

Answer: b

7. pay increase

After getting a pay increase, the workers

a. were paid more money

b. had to pay more money

c. had to pay more workers

Answer: a

8. real wages

"Real wages" means the actual

a. payments you receive for work

b. buying power your wages give you

c. amount you receive after paying tax

Answer: b

9. steady job

If you have a steady job, it means you can

a. start your own business

b. work whenever you like

c. make long-term plans

Answer: c

10. working conditions

The working conditions are poor because

a. the company won't improve them

b. the workers damaged them

c. the work is poorly done

Answer: a