Using Collocations for Natural English - Elizabeth Walter, Kate Woodford 2010

Metaphor in collocations
Review Units 5-8

These exercises use collocations from units 5-8, and will help you see how many you have remembered. After each exercise, add up your score to see how well you have done.

1 Complete the sentences.

1 I know it sounds like a lame ... but I never seem to find the time to call her.

2 She's just landed a fantastic ... in a city bank.

3 The children's safety is of paramount ... .

4 She'd struck up a ... with a man in the cafe.

5 With those qualifications I'm sure she has a very bright ... ahead of her.

6 Her report was full of mistakes. I spotted a glaring ... in the first paragraph.

7 I accidentally set off an ... by leaning on a door.

8 He came out of the meeting disappointed that he had failed to clinch the ... .

9 The report identified a pressing ... for better training in the industry.

10 It was the second album that really launched his ... as an international recording artist.

2 Underline the correct word to complete the collocations.

1 To win three championships in a row is a questionable/remarkable/doubtless achievement.

2 I have very aching/stabbing/painful memories of that time.

3 He acquired/accomplished/managed a reputation for honesty and efficiency.

4 When I wrote the biography, I managed to achieve/target/gain access to all her private letters.

5 If you try to keep fit now, you will harvest/reap/receive the benefits in later life.

6 She is one of the country's leading/heading/fronting experts on the treatment of brain injury.

7 He played a managing/obvious/prominent role in the peace negotiations.

8 The government has brought in/carried in/entered in a law to ban smoking in public places.

9 His absence from the football pitch has sparked/called up/prompted speculation about his health.

10 We are hoping that this media campaign will generate/fabricate/advertise interest in our products.

3 Match the collocations 1-10 to the definitions a-j.

1 promising start   a the most important thing you need to do

2 burning issue   b to make someone love you

3 adopt an approach  c to make people admire you

4 win someone's heart d to cause people to complain

5 fulfil a dream   e a good beginning to something

6 meet a deadline  f a very important matter

7 trigger protests  g a very bad temper

8 foul mood    h to do something in a particular way

9 earn respect   i to do something within the time allowed

10 top priority   j to do something you have always wanted to do

4 Match the two halves of the sentences.

1 He didn't win the race, but    a with teenage boys.

2 The show was a huge success   b in my decision to move to Spain.

3 She promised to give my idea   c to ban people from keeping dangerous dogs.

4 They had to build a shelter from wood  d captured the interest of people all over the world.

5 Liverpool have secured a victory that  e and they accomplished the task within two hours.

6 His life story has     f some serious consideration.

7 The government may introduce legislation g to try to get more homeless people into work.

8 For me, sun and sand are    h he put in a solid performance.

9 We are about to embark on a project  I takes them through to the final.

10 The weather was a decisive factor  j essential ingredients in a good holiday.

5 Correct the word in italics to make a collocation with the word in bold in each sentence.

1 As dawn crashed, we set off home.    6 She created a favourable opinion on all of us.

2 I have a top opinion of her skills.    7 I was still at school when war broke in.

3 This is a prime instance of neo-Gothic architecture. 8 She sustained horrific illnesses in the fall.

4 Our overriding worry is for their safety.   9 She's received very shoddy reactions from them.

5 It was a momentous choice that changed his life. 10 She's had a bit of a rough period recently.

6 Complete the sentences with collocations from the box. Use the correct form of the verbs.

obtain permission ✵ set up a company ✵ notable achievement ✵ poor quality ✵ key figure ✵ able students ✵ achieve an ambition ✵ glowing references ✵ vital importance ✵ violence erupts

1 She received ... from her previous employer.

2 I think these clothes are very ... considering how much they cost.

3 The money will help her to ... of sailing round the world.

4 I managed to ... to visit his former home.

5 She is a ... in the animal rights movement.

6 It is of ... that food and shelter is supplied to the area immediately.

7 To complete her studies in such difficult circumstances was a ... .

8 ... when rival marchers arrived in the same area.

9 After leaving her first job, she decided to ... of her own.

10 We run extra classes for our more ... .

Classroom extra

In pairs, ask students to tell their partners about times they have felt happy or sad, using the collocations they have learned, e.g./ had a sinking feeling before I went into my exam.

9 Metaphor in collocations

Describing your mood

Metaphor is the use of a word or phrase to represent something else with similar qualities. For example, if we describe two people as being 'at war', we mean that they are arguing, not that they are literally fighting. There are many metaphors to describe different moods.

1 Complete the newspaper report about a tennis match with words from the box.

despair • keep • mood • morale • feeling • low • buoyant • mind

Study tip

Metaphors help give colour and vitality to descriptions. Look out for other metaphors in collocations to do with moods.

Fresh from his Paris triumph, Richardson started the match in a 1 ... mood, leaping around the court and joking with the crowd. Alsopp, on the other hand, seemed in 2... spirits. With three consecutive defeats weighing on his 3..., his play lacked confidence, and he lost the first set 6-1. At this point, he might easily have sunk into 4..., but his many loyal fans did their best to raise his 5... with their noisy chanting and wild applause at every winning shot. You could see his 6... lifting, and Richardson must have had a sinking 7... as Alsopp's game regained its confidence and flair. Although Richardson's own fans did their best to 8... his spirits up, he ended up losing the match 1-6, 7-5, 6-3.

2 Match the people 1-8 to the descriptions of what they are feeling or doing a-h.

1 Football manager: 'Come on lads, we may be one-nil down, but we're the better side. You just need to believe in yourselves.'

2 Schoolgirl: 'I haven't done my homework. I know I'm going to be in trouble:

3 Businesswoman: 'So, as you can see, we've had another year of solid growth:

4 Unemployed father: 'The children need new shoes, the rent's due and I can't find a job anywhere:

5 Actress: 'The reviews were terrible - I burst into tears when I opened the paper. But then I went outside in the sunshine, and gradually I started to feel better.'

6 Mountaineer: 'We were completely lost and surrounded by fog, but we sang songs and told each other that someone would rescue us soon:

7 Homeless man: 'After I lost my job, my marriage broke up and I gradually became more and more unhappy. I couldn't find a reason to get up in the morning:

8 Athlete: 'I haven't been able to train for over a month because of this leg injury. If I can't start soon, I'll miss the Olympic trials and years of hard work will be lost.

a She is in a buoyant mood.

b Her mood began to lift.

c She's in really low spirits because she can't train.

d He sank into despair.

e She has a sinking feeling as she goes into school.

f He is trying to raise the morale of his team.

g His problems are weighing on his mind.

h They sang songs to keep their spirits up.

3 How cheerful are you? Answer these questions by choosing a, b or c, and Aunt Agnes will tell you!

How cheerful are you?

1 Yesterday morning you spoke rudely to your mother on the phone. Did you:

a forget about it as soon as you put the phone down?

b feel guilty for an hour or so?

c find that it weighed on your mind all day?

2 How would you describe your mood today?

a I'm in a really buoyant mood.

b I'm OK -same as usual.

c I can't seem to take an interest in anything around me.

3 You have just failed an important exam. Would you: a shrug it off? You can always take it again. b be fed up for a few days, but then get over it? c sink into despair? Your whole life is a failure.

4 How would feel if your best friend asked you to make a speech at his wedding?

a I'd be honoured and delighted.

b I'd be flattered, but very nervous.

c I'd get that sinking feeling I always have when people try to make me do things I don't want to.

5 If you are feeling sad, what do you do to lift your mood?

a Eat some chocolate and talk to my friends.

b Think about my next holiday.

c Nothing. We can all be grumpy if we want to.

6 You are stuck in a lift with four other people. One of them suggests you sing to keep your spirits up. How would you react?

a I'd join in enthusiastically.

b I'd feel a bit embarrassed, but I'd sing a verse or two.

c Sing? Are they mad?

7 If you were offered a promotion at work, would it:

a really raise your morale?

b not make much difference?

c make you angry? It should have happened long ago.

8 How would you feel if your friends forgot your birthday?

a A bit annoyed, but I'd soon get over it.

b In really low spirits - I'd think they didn't care about me.

c I haven't got any friends.

Aunt Agnes savs:

MOSTLY A'S

You always see the positive in a situation, and you never let your problems get you down. Some people might say your constant cheerfulness is slightly annoying, but I think you'd make a great friend or colleague.

MOSTLY B'S

Like most people, you have good days and bad days, but you try to deal with your bad days calmly and rationally. Some people might say you don't express your emotions enough, but I think you are practical and sensible.

MOSTLY C'S

It takes a brave person to upset you! When you are angry or disappointed, you certainly don't hide it. Some people might say you are a complete misery, but I think you are refreshingly honest about your feelings.

4 Put the phrases in the correct order to make sentences. Add punctuation where necessary.

1 about his boss's criticism/he was upset/when he was out with friends/but later that evening/his mood lifted

2 a buoyant mood/unexpectedly good exam results/combined with the gift of/have put him in/a new laptop from his dad

3 when I was told/I shut myself away/that I might/and sank into despair/lose my sight

4 problems/ at work because/I can't concentrate/weighing on my mind/I have so many

5 we knew/to keep our spirits up/we would be rescued/so we all told jokes/ eventually

6 her low spirits/she still hadn't been able/were due to/to find a job/the fact that

7 for the company/managers need to/come up with a plan/after so much bad publicity/to raise the morale of staff

8 the sinking feeling I had/can you imagine/had lost /when I realised I/ my passport

Classroom extra

If Exercise 3 is being done in class, ask students to interview one another, rather than doing the questionnaire individually.

Hot and cold

The collocations in these exercises use the metaphor of temperature being connected to emotion. Words meaning heat are often connected to positive or strong emotions, including anger, while words meaning cold are often connected to negative emotions.

5 Paolo and Sylvia are describing a work meeting. Complete what they say with words from the box. Listen to the recording to check your answers.

hot • hotly • boil • lukewarm • icy • frosty • flared • thawed • heated • blistering

I don't know what I did in last week's meeting to offend Sylvia but she fixed me with an 1... stare in the office canteen at lunch today. It had been a difficult meeting, I'll admit. Sylvia was anxious anyway, because her department has had a number of staff problems recently. I dared to suggest a solution which met with a decidedly 2... response. I don't know why - it was a perfectly sensible suggestion as far as I was concerned. I was a bit frustrated by Sylvia's attitude and I told her so. There followed a 3... debate with both of us speaking our minds. At times tempers 4... and frank words were exchanged but, for my part, I said nothing that I regret. I suppose I can be quite blunt but I'm always careful to be professional. I've seen Sylvia several times since the meeting and tried to be friendly but my attempts at friendly conversation have all met with a ^5... reception.

Paolo is known throughout the company for his 6… temper and I never look forward to meetings with him. I'd had some problems with two members of staff just before the meeting and was calmly discussing the issues with my colleagues when Paolo arrived, late, for the meeting. He obviously thought he had all the answers to my problems and proceeded to tell me them. I listened respectfully to what he had to say and even acknowledged one or two good points that he'd made. Then, quite out of the blue, he launched a 7... attack on my department -or more specifically, the way I run the department. I was outraged by this and felt the anger 8... up inside me but I was careful not to let it show -1 think it's important to stay calm in a work situation. I said to Paolo that I thought he had a rather negative attitude towards my department, a suggestion that he 9... denied. Relations between us have 10... somewhat since the meeting. I've bumped into him once or twice in the canteen and made a point of being pleasant to him.

6 Are the statements true (T) or false (F)?

1 Sylvia likes having meetings with Paolo.

2 Sylvia has had problems with staff in her department.

3 Sylvia thought Paolo made his suggestions in a polite and respectful way.

4 Sylvia and Paolo had an argument in the meeting.

5 Sylvia felt very angry with Paolo.

6 Sylvia thinks that Paolo respects her ability as a manager.

7 Sylvia and Paolo are good friends now.

8 Sylvia and Paolo have not seen each other since the meeting.

7 Match the collocations in Exercise 5 with the clues.

1 If you give one of these, you are not particularly enthusiastic about a suggestion.

Lurewarm response

2 If you launch one of these, you criticise someone or something very strongly.

3 If you have one of these, you get angry very easily.

4 If this happens to you, you feel anger growing inside you.

5 If you do this, you insist angrily that something is not true.

6 If you give someone one of these, you look at them in a very unfriendly way.

7 If this happens, people suddenly start to speak and act angrily.

8 If you give someone one of these, you make them feel that they are not welcome.

9 If this happens, you start to get on better with someone you were angry with before.

10 If you have one of these, you discuss something angrily.

8 Complete the sentences using the collocations you have learned above. Make sure you use the correct form of the verbs.

1 Some of the staff wanted a pay rise, while others said they'd prefer more holiday. We ended up having a very ... about it.

2 Today's newspapers all carry reports that the environment minister accepted bribes from building companies. He has ... these allegations.

3 The head teacher seemed unimpressed by our suggestions for more parental involvement in the school. There was a fairly ... from the teachers too.

4 Pensioners have been struggling with rising prices. Not surprisingly, the minister received a ... when she visited a group of them this week.

5 The couple have not spoken since the split. Outside court, she simply walked past him with an ... .

6 Social workers had organised a meeting between the two gangs. But the police had to be called when ... and fighting broke out.

7 They were barely speaking to each other for years, but must have ... because I saw them having a coffee together last week.

8 The report delivered a ... on all those whose poor work contributed to the disaster.

9 This course will teach you how to control your emotions better. We will give you ways to cope when you feel ... inside you.

10 I often regret the things I say. The trouble is, I have a very ... and sometimes I just can't control myself.

Classroom extra

Divide the class into groups of three or four. Give each group one of the following collocations: hotly deny, lukewarm response, blistering attack, tempers flare, heated debate, relations thaw, frosty reception.

Students should write a short sketch illustrating the collocation. For example, the group with hotly deny could write a news item where a reporter puts allegations to a celebrity, and the celebrity denies them. Each group performs its sketch and the other groups have to guess the collocation.