27 Collocations - Adjectives + Nouns

The word Collocation defines a pair or group of words that habitually appear together to convey a whole new meaning.

Some Collocations are composed by Adjectives and Nouns and this means that a specific Noun always follows a specific Adjective.

Collocations of Adjectives and Nouns usually appear with the following structure:
Adjective + noun.

Adjectives give connotative meaning to the noun.

• Heavy
  • We were walking in heavy rain.
  • It’s difficult to ski in heavy snow.
  • I was late due to heavy traffic.
  • Could you help me to carry this heavy bag?
  • I couldn’t lift this heavy box.
  • You shouldn’t carry a heavy suitcase alone.
• Strong
  • The strong wind meant we couldn’t go for a walk yesterday.
  • He speaks English with a strong Russian accent.
  • Horseradish has a very strong taste.
  • This coffee has a very strong smell.
  • The man just wanted a strong drink.
• Rich
  • Rich people can afford to buy everything they want.
  • She reads a lot books and has a rich vocabulary.
  • Greece has a very rich culture.
  • This region of the UK has a very rich history.
• Big
  • The documentary was a big disappointment.
  • The gameshow was a big failure.
  • He admitted to make this big mistake.
  • This episode was a big surprise for us!

There is no reason why they go together, and you should learn them by heart with practice and time.

When Adjectives and nouns appear together to convey a complete meaning, we call this Collocation of Adjectives and Nouns. Some Adjectives are used with specific word, that is why some Collocations are fixed.

The structure for this Collocation is:
Adjective + noun (e.g. She has a strong Italian accent.).

For example:
— “She has a strong Italian accent.” = While she is speaking, you can hear the Italian accent clearly.

Let’s revise this content within the [Form] section. Take a look at the [Example] section that shows its use within a context.