100 Everyday English Collocations with Examples & PDF

Hello, English learners! Would you like to speak English more naturally and confidently? Learning everyday English collocations is one of the best ways to improve your vocabulary and stop translating word by word.

Collocations are words that commonly appear together, such as make the bed, take a break, meet a deadline and keep in touch. Native and proficient English speakers use these natural word combinations automatically in both spoken and written English.

In this lesson, you will learn 100 everyday English collocations connected with home life, feelings, communication, work, study, relationships, travel, food, problems and the environment. Every collocation comes with a clear meaning and a natural example sentence to show you how it is used in context.

At the end of the lesson, you can also download a free PDF containing all 100 collocations for revision and practice.

Let’s begin and make your English sound more natural, one collocation at a time!

Table of Contents

Everyday English Collocations for Daily Life

Collocation	Meaning	Example sentence
Make the bed	tidy your bed after sleeping	I always make the bed before leaving for work.
Do the washing-up	wash dishes	Whose turn is it to do the washing-up?
Take a shower	wash yourself	She takes a shower every morning.
Brush your teeth	clean your teeth	Don’t forget to brush your teeth before bed.
Put the kettle on	start boiling water for tea	Shall I put the kettle on?
Do the shopping	buy food and supplies	We need to do the shopping this afternoon.
Lay the table	prepare the table for a meal	Can you lay the table for dinner?
Do the laundry	wash clothes	I’ve got piles of laundry to do.
Hang out the washing	dry clothes on a line	The sun’s out, let’s hang out the washing.
Take out the rubbish	dispose of waste	Don’t forget to take out the rubbish tonight.

Collocations for Thinking and Feelings

Collocation	Meaning	Example sentence
Make a decision	decide	I can’t make a decision right now.
Change your mind	decide something different	He changed his mind at the last minute.
Keep in mind	remember	Keep in mind that she’s still new here.
Have second thoughts	start doubting a decision	I’m having second thoughts about the trip.
Lose your temper	get angry	She lost her temper over nothing.
Take it personally	feel insulted	Don’t take it personally – he’s like that with everyone.
Give it some thought	think about something	I’ll give it some thought and let you know.
Come to a conclusion	reach a decision	They came to a conclusion after much debate.
Feel under the weather	feel unwell	I’m feeling a bit under the weather today.
Burst into tears	suddenly start crying	She burst into tears when she heard the news.

Communication Collocations

Collocation	Meaning	Example sentence
Have a chat	talk casually	Let’s have a chat over coffee.
Make a phone call	call someone	I need to make a quick phone call.
Return a call	call someone back	I forgot to return her call yesterday.
Keep in touch	stay in contact	We’ve kept in touch since school.
Speak your mind	say what you really think	He always speaks his mind, even if it’s rude.
Break the news	tell someone important news	She broke the news gently.
Drop someone a line	contact someone	Drop me a line when you arrive.
Get the message	understand	I think he finally got the message.
Talk nonsense	say silly or untrue things	You’re talking nonsense again!
Tell a lie	say something untrue	She told a lie to avoid getting in trouble.

Work and Study Collocations

Collocation	Meaning	Example sentence
Apply for a job	submit an application	She applied for a job at the council.
Attend a meeting	go to a meeting	I’ve got to attend a meeting at 10.
Meet a deadline	finish work on time	It was tough, but I met the deadline.
Take notes	write things down	I always take notes in lectures.
Do research	investigate	He’s doing research on renewable energy.
Get a promotion	move up in rank	She got a promotion last month.
Work overtime	work extra hours	I had to work overtime all week.
Earn a living	make money	He earns a living as a freelance designer.
Take a break	stop working temporarily	Let’s take a short break.
Join a course	start studying	She’s joined a course in web design.

Collocations Connected with Time and Routine

Collocation	Meaning	Example sentence
Run out of time	not have enough time	We ran out of time before we finished.
Save time	do something more efficiently	Using templates saves time.
Kill time	do something while waiting	I played a game to kill time.
Spend time	use time for something	We spent the whole day at the beach.
Waste time	not use time well	Stop wasting time and get on with it.
Be pressed for time	not have much time	I’m a bit pressed for time today.
Make time for	find time for something	Try to make time for exercise.
Set an alarm	prepare to wake up	I forgot to set my alarm.
Stick to a schedule	follow a plan	I try to stick to a schedule when I can.
Meet up later	see someone later	Let’s meet up later for coffee.

Social Life and Relationship Collocations

Collocation	Meaning	Example sentence
Get on well with	have a good relationship	I get on well with my neighbours.
Fall out with someone	argue and stop being friendly	He fell out with his brother over money.
Make friends	begin new friendships	It’s easier to make friends at university.
Keep someone company	stay with someone so they aren’t alone	I’ll keep you company while you wait.
Go for a drink	meet socially for drinks	Do you want to go for a drink after work?
Catch up with someone	talk after not seeing someone for a while	It was lovely catching up with her last night.
Spend quality time	meaningful time with others	We try to spend quality time as a family.
Pay someone a visit	visit someone	I paid my gran a visit on Sunday.
Have a row (informal)	have an argument	They had a row about the bills.
Lose touch with	no longer be in contact	I lost touch with him after school.

Holiday and Leisure Collocations

Collocation	Meaning	Example sentence
Go on holiday	take a vacation	We’re going on holiday to Spain next month.
Take a day off	not go to work for one day	I’m taking a day off on Friday.
Have a lie-in	sleep late	I had a lovely lie-in this morning.
Get away from it all	escape everyday life	A trip to the countryside helps me get away from it all.
Go sightseeing	visit tourist attractions	We went sightseeing in Edinburgh.
Pack your bags	get ready to travel	Come on – pack your bags, we’re leaving!
Catch a train/bus/flight	travel by public transport	We caught an early train to Manchester.
Miss your flight	not get on your plane	I missed my flight because of traffic.
Go for a stroll	walk casually	Let’s go for a stroll by the river.
Try local cuisine	eat traditional food in a place	I love trying local cuisine when I travel.

Food and Drink Collocations

Collocation	Meaning	Example sentence
Have breakfast/lunch/dinner	eat meals	We had dinner at a nice little pub.
Grab a bite to eat	eat something quickly	Let’s grab a bite to eat before the film.
Make a reservation	book a table	Have you made a reservation for dinner?
Skip a meal	not eat a meal	She skipped lunch because she was so busy.
Be starving (informal)	be very hungry	I’m absolutely starving!
Eat out	dine at a restaurant	We usually eat out on Fridays.
Cut down on	reduce consumption	I’m trying to cut down on sugar.
Have a sweet tooth	like sugary things	He’s got a real sweet tooth.
Cook from scratch	cook using fresh ingredients	She always cooks from scratch.
Try a new recipe	make a dish you’ve never cooked before	I tried a new curry recipe last night.

Collocations for Problems and Solutions

Collocation	Meaning	Example sentence
Face a challenge	deal with a difficult situation	We’re facing a big challenge at the moment.
Deal with a problem	manage a difficulty	How did you deal with that situation?
Find a solution	solve an issue	We’re working hard to find a solution.
Make a mistake	do something wrong	He made a mistake on the form.
Take responsibility	admit fault and accept the consequences	She took full responsibility for the error.
Overcome difficulties	succeed despite problems	He overcame many difficulties to get where he is.
Avoid conflict	prevent an argument or fight	We’re trying to avoid conflict at all costs.
Sort things out	resolve a situation	Let’s sort things out before it gets worse.
Raise a concern	express worry	Several people have raised concerns about the plan.
Reach an agreement	decide on something together	We finally reached an agreement.

Environmental and Social Collocations

Collocation	Meaning	Example sentence
Protect the environment	take care of nature	We should all do our bit to protect the environment.
Reduce waste	use less and recycle	We need to reduce waste at home.
Use public transport	avoid private cars	I use public transport whenever possible.
Recycle plastic/paper	reuse materials	They recycle plastic bottles at work.
Cut carbon emissions	reduce pollution	Governments must cut carbon emissions.
Volunteer your time	give your time to help	She volunteers her time at the animal shelter.
Raise money for charity	collect donations	He ran the marathon to raise money for charity.
Support a cause	believe in a charity or campaign	We support several causes through monthly donations.
Campaign for change	try to improve something	They’re campaigning for safer streets.
Make a difference	have a positive impact	Small actions can make a big difference.