collocation Definition
the habitual juxtaposition of a particular word with another word or words with a frequency greater than chance.
Using collocation: Examples
Take a moment to familiarize yourself with how "collocation" can be used in various situations through the following examples!
Example
'Strong tea' is an example of a collocation in English.
Example
The phrase 'make a decision' is a common collocation.
Example
In English, we say 'heavy rain' but not 'strong rain', because 'heavy' is the collocating adjective for 'rain'.
collocation Synonyms and Antonyms
Phrases with collocation
a collocation of two or more content words that co-occur more often than would be expected by chance
Example
The phrase 'make a decision' is a lexical collocation.
a collocation of a content word and a function word that co-occur more often than would be expected by chance
Example
The phrase 'take into account' is a grammatical collocation.
a collocation that is limited to a particular context or domain
Example
The phrase 'highly likely' is a restricted collocation used in academic writing.
Summary: collocation in Brief
The term 'collocation' [kəˌləʊˈkeɪʃən] refers to the habitual juxtaposition of a particular word with another word or words with a frequency greater than chance. It can be lexical or grammatical, and may be restricted to a particular context or domain. Examples include 'strong tea,' 'make a decision,' and 'heavy rain.'
