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"If a man can be known by nothing else, then he may be known by his companions" (c.1591)

Meaning: People are similar in character to their friends

"You shall know a word by the company it keeps" J R Firth (British linguist, 1890-1960)

Collocations (Advanced)

The "father" of collocation is usually considered to be J.R. Firth, a British linguist who died in 1960. It
was he that first used the term "collocation" in its linguistic sense.

Definition from Cambridge Advanced Learners Dictionary:
"(of words and phrases) to often be used together in a way that sounds correct to people who have
spoken the language all their lives, but might not be expected from the meaning"

Why do native speakers usually say "shall we have a coffee?" and not "shall we drink a coffee?" Even
though the second is grammatically correct, it is very unlikely you will ever hear a native speaker say
it. Why?.....They just do!

Collocations are essential communication devices for non-native speakers. Using them shows the
listener that the speaker has an intimate knowledge of English, and the speaker's English sounds
much more native. The reason for this is that many English learners translate from their own
language into English in their minds and then speak the translation. This cannot be done with
collocations as they very rarely can be translated.


Collocation: A pair or group of words that are often used together e.g. fast car, fast food, a
quick glance, a quick meal, make an effort, keep to/stick to the rules, etc.
Types of collocation
Adjective + Noun (Unemployment is a major problem)
Noun+ Verb (The economy boomed in the 1990s.)
Noun + Noun (Let's give him a round of applause.)
Verb and Adverb (He pulled steadily on the rope and helped her to safety.)
Adverb and Adjective (They are happily married.)
Verb +Preposition (Your grade will depend on your work.)
Adjective preposition (The little girl is afraid of the dark.)








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Todos os direitos reservados e protegidos pela Lei 9.610 de 19/02/1998.


When is a collocation NOT a collocation?
Some linguists treat fixed phrases as extended collocations (as far as I'm concerned, not on your life,
rather you than me, under the weather, if you've got the time). Others suggest that when a sequence
of words is 100% predictable, and allows absolutely no change except possibly in tense, it is not
helpful to treat it as a collocation. Such sequences they generally treat as fixed expressions ("prim
and proper") or idioms ("kick the bucket").
Collocations may be strong or weak. Strong collocations are where the link between the two words is
quite fixed and restricted. Weak collocations are where a word can collocate with many other words.

Fixed/Strong Weak



inclement weather picturesque village
picturesque location

broad accent
broad river
broad smile