Exercises C1 : use Collocations in English (answers)

These exercises are based on the core principle of the course: fluency in English comes from mastering fixed collocations, not just individual words. Practice recognising and using combinations like ‘highly recommended’ or ‘make progress’ in context.

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Exercice 1 — Choose the Correct Collocation

Choose the option that correctly completes each sentence with a natural English collocation.

1. The new restaurant downtown is ___ by food critics and locals alike.
2. After months of hard work, the students finally started to ___ in their writing skills.
3. The CEO decided to ___ a decision about the merger until further data was available.
4. Her presentation ___ a lasting impression on everyone in the boardroom.

Correction

1. The new restaurant downtown is highly recommended by food critics and locals alike.
2. After months of hard work, the students finally started to make progress in their writing skills.
3. The CEO decided to delay making a decision about the merger until further data was available.
4. Her presentation made a lasting impression on everyone in the boardroom.

Exercice 2 — Match the Collocation Pairs

Match each verb on the left with the correct noun on the right to form a natural English collocation, then write the full sentence provided.

1. Match the verb 'reach' with the correct noun to complete the sentence: 'After three hours of negotiation, both parties managed to ___ an agreement.'
2. Match the verb 'pay' with the correct noun to complete the sentence: 'You should always ___ close attention when a native speaker uses idiomatic language.'
3. Match the verb 'raise' with the correct noun to complete the sentence: 'The journalist was the first to ___ serious concerns about the safety of the new policy.'
4. Match the verb 'take' with the correct noun to complete the sentence: 'The government needs to ___ immediate action to address the housing crisis.'

Correction

1. After three hours of negotiation, both parties managed to reach an agreement.
2. You should always pay close attention when a native speaker uses idiomatic language.
3. The journalist was the first to raise serious concerns about the safety of the new policy.
4. The government needs to take immediate action to address the housing crisis.

Exercice 3 — Complete the Collocations

Fill in each blank with the correct word to form a fixed English collocation. Write the complete sentence in your answer.

1. The documentary on climate change is ___ recommended for anyone interested in environmental issues.
2. Despite the setbacks, the research team continued to make steady ___ towards finding a cure.
3. Learning fixed word combinations is ___ important if you want to sound natural in English.
4. She has a ___ knowledge of English collocations, which makes her writing feel truly fluent and natural.

Correction

1. The documentary on climate change is highly recommended for anyone interested in environmental issues.
2. Despite the setbacks, the research team continued to make steady progress towards finding a cure.
3. Learning fixed word combinations is crucially important if you want to sound natural in English.
4. She has a deep knowledge of English collocations, which makes her writing feel truly fluent and natural.