English collocations: 25 word pairs natives always use
B1–B225 words
Fluency is largely a matter of choosing the right partner word: you make a decision but take a break, and no rule explains why. Collocations are memory work, which is exactly what flashcards are for.
Where you will use it: Speaking naturally, writing and exams.
English collocations — The word list
| Word | Meaning |
|---|---|
| make a decision | To decide something.“We need to make a decision today.” |
| take a break | To stop working for a short time.“Let's take a break for ten minutes.” |
| heavy rain | Rain falling in large amounts.“Heavy rain delayed the flight.” |
| pay attention | To listen or watch carefully.“Pay attention to the spelling.” |
| strong coffee | Coffee with an intense taste.“I need a strong coffee.” |
| do research | To study a subject carefully.“She does research on memory.” |
| keep in touch | To stay in contact.“Let's keep in touch after the course.” |
| save time | To avoid wasting time.“The app saves time every morning.” |
| highly recommend | To recommend strongly.“I highly recommend this book.” |
| deeply concerned | Very worried.“Parents are deeply concerned.” |
| meet a deadline | To finish on time.“We met the deadline easily.” |
| bitterly disappointed | Extremely disappointed.“They were bitterly disappointed.” |
| catch a bus | To get on a bus in time.“We caught the last bus home.” |
| have a conversation | To talk with someone.“We had a long conversation about work.” |
| make progress | To improve or move forward.“You are making steady progress.” |
| take responsibility | To accept duty for something.“She took responsibility for the mistake.” |
| raise awareness | To help more people understand an issue.“The campaign raises awareness of food waste.” |
| reach an agreement | To agree after discussion.“Both sides reached an agreement.” |
| solve a problem | To find an answer to a difficulty.“The update solved the problem.” |
| break a habit | To stop a repeated behaviour.“It takes time to break a habit.” |
| lose interest | To stop being interested.“He quickly lost interest in the show.” |
| fully aware | Knowing something completely.“They were fully aware of the risk.” |
| closely related | Connected in an important way.“Sleep and memory are closely related.” |
| widely available | Easy to obtain in many places.“The vaccine is now widely available.” |
| seriously injured | Hurt very badly.“Two passengers were seriously injured.” |
Useful learning tips
- Learn in small groupsTake five words at a time and review them before adding more.
- Say the examples aloudReading each sentence aloud connects spelling, sound and meaning.
- Write your own sentenceUse each word in a true sentence about your life or work.
How to study this list
Add five or six of these words a day rather than the whole list at once, keep the example sentence on the card, and review them when they come due. WordNest schedules each word across seven growing intervals — same day, then 1, 3, 7, 14, 30 and 60 days — so the list is still with you months later. Read how spaced repetition works if you want the reasoning behind those numbers.
Studying english collocations pairs well with our B1–B2 English Vocabulary, B2 Vocabulary and common English idioms, or browse all free English word lists.
Related guides
Questions about this list
How can I practise English collocations?
Start with five words and say each example aloud. Then recall the word from its meaning and review it over several days.
Where can I use English collocations?
Speaking naturally, writing and exams.
How many words are in this list?
This list contains 25 English words with definitions and example sentences. It is a starting set, not a complete syllabus.
Turn this list into flashcards
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