lecture 2: understanding why we need to learn collocations online lecture series on collocation...

Lecture 2: Understanding Why We

Need to Learn Collocations

Online Lecture Series on Collocation Learning

Developed by Yang Ying

2010

Review of Lecture 1: What is Collocation?

Word Combinations

Phrases

Longer chunks

single words

Lecture 1 tells you about what is

collocation.

Focus of Lecture 2:

the importance of collocation

learning

Why Should We Learn Collocations?

Reason 1: Helps Language Production

Knowing the meaning of single words – comprehension

Knowing word combinations

–production/use

ExampleSingle word: analysis--

recognition Word combinations

What verb can I put before “analysis”?

Word combinations: Collocations

What verb can I put before

“analysis”?

You can say “perform an analysis” or “carry

out an analysis”!

Word combinations: Collocations

Great! Thank you!

Word combination: perform an analysis, carry out an analysis – USE

Why Should We Learn Collocations?

Reason 2: Be native-like

Word grammar—some combinations are allowed in your

native tongue, but not in the target language

Examples

What would you say?

A strong engine or a powerful engine?

Business journey or business trip?

Why Should We Learn Collocations? Reason 3: Express your ideas

better Giving you more power to

express your ideas

Contrast the following

1. This is a good book and contains a lot of interesting details.

2. This is a fascinating book and contains a wealth of historical detail.

You communicate much more with the right combination of words !

Why Should We Learn Collocations? Reason 4: Helping you to enhance writing

sophistication and avoid simple, flat style of writing. E.g. overuse of general words only.

Example

a good analysis? – too general – in what way is it good?

How about?

a detailed analysisa thorough analysis an in-depth analysis

Reason 5: Further Language Development

Bothered about slow progress in language development at this stage? Not knowing what to learn after all grammar topics have been learned?

Learning collocations helps you take off again!!!

Words from Experts

For intermediate level language learners, when they have learned the grammatical structures of the language and are able to produce such structures correctly, the only viable way for them to improve further and to reach the advanced level of language proficiency is to learn more collocations rather than doing grammar only (Morgan Lewis, 2001).

Do you know?

Uneducated native speakers of English may only have a

vocabulary size of 2000 words, but can function well in their

daily communication. That’s because

they are able to combine these words to make meaning

Summary

Importance of learning collocation

Improve language useUse native like expressions Express your ideas with greater

powerImprove writing sophistication Further develop your language

proficiency

Start Paying Attention to Collocations

Start Learning Collocations

Why Wait?

ReferencesLewis, Morgan. (2001). Third

conditional again! Isn't there anything else? New Routes, 12. Retrieved June 25, 2002 from http://www.disal.com.br/nroutes/nr12/indice.htm

Oxford Collocations Dictionary for Students of English (2003). Oxford University Press.

Click below to continue onto

Lecture 3Developing Awareness of

Collocation Through Reading