Essential collocations — 50 IELTS-frequent verb+noun pairs

What collocations are

Collocations = words that go TOGETHER naturally:

• "make a decision" ✓ (not "do a decision")
• "strong coffee" ✓ (not "powerful coffee")
• "heavy rain" ✓ (not "big rain")

Using wrong collocation = sounds unnatural even if grammatically correct.

Band 8 LR (Lexical Resource) explicitly rewards collocational competence.

50 essential IELTS collocations

Verb + Noun (academic action)

1. conduct research — "They conducted research on the topic."
2. draw a conclusion — "We can draw a conclusion from this evidence."
3. raise awareness — "The campaign raises awareness of mental health."
4. make progress — "Vietnam has made significant progress."
5. reach an agreement — "The parties reached an agreement after negotiations."
6. pose a threat — "Climate change poses a threat to biodiversity."
7. achieve a goal — "She achieved her goal of fluency."
8. face a challenge — "Developing nations face significant challenges."
9. provide evidence — "The study provides evidence for the hypothesis."
10. gain experience — "Internships allow students to gain experience."

Adjective + Noun (description)

1. significant impact — "Technology has a significant impact on society."
2. major concern — "Pollution is a major concern globally."
3. substantial increase — "There was a substantial increase in demand."
4. viable solution — "Solar energy is a viable solution."
5. fundamental change — "AI represents a fundamental change in how we work."
6. profound effect — "The pandemic had a profound effect on education."
7. far-reaching consequences — "The policy has far-reaching consequences."
8. pressing issue — "Climate change is a pressing issue."
9. widespread support — "The proposal received widespread support."
10. detrimental effect — "Excessive screen time has a detrimental effect on sleep."

Adverb + Verb (emphasis)

1. strongly believe — "I strongly believe in equal access to education."
2. significantly improve — "Practice can significantly improve performance."
3. substantially reduce — "Renewable energy can substantially reduce emissions."
4. rapidly increase — "Urban populations have rapidly increased."
5. dramatically change — "Mobile technology has dramatically changed communication."
6. deeply concerned — "Many are deeply concerned about privacy."
7. widely accepted — "This theory is widely accepted in the scientific community."
8. firmly establish — "The company is firmly established in the market."
9. highly likely — "It is highly likely that prices will rise."
10. closely linked — "Diet and health are closely linked."

Verb + Adverb

1. address adequately — "The policy fails to address the issue adequately."
2. examine closely — "We need to examine these claims closely."
3. consider carefully — "This decision must be considered carefully."
4. define clearly — "The terms should be defined clearly."
5. explain thoroughly — "The teacher explained the concept thoroughly."

Noun + Noun (compound concepts)

1. a wealth of information — "The internet offers a wealth of information."
2. a range of options — "Students have a range of options."
3. a sense of responsibility — "Volunteering develops a sense of responsibility."
4. a level of expertise — "This requires a high level of expertise."
5. a number of factors — "A number of factors contribute to this trend."