Use Collocation to Hike up Your IELTS Score – Key Word: Subject

Improving your IELTS Speaking and Writing depends heavily on your ability to use natural collocations. One of the most common academic and conversational words in English is subject. It has a wide range of collocations and meanings that can appear in both IELTS Speaking and Writing tasks. In this lesson, we’ll explore different ways to use subject, supported by practice exercises and an answer key.

Why Focus on Collocations with “Subject”?

Collocations are word partnerships that native speakers use naturally. For IELTS candidates, mastering these combinations is crucial because:

• They boost fluency and accuracy in IELTS Speaking.
• They improve lexical resource in IELTS Writing, a key band descriptor.
• They help you avoid unnatural phrasing and instead sound more precise and confident.

The keyword subject is versatile, it can mean a topic of discussion, an area of study, or even a sensitive issue. Let’s look at how to use it effectively.

1. Verb + Subject

When using subject in conversation, certain verbs naturally collocate with it.

Practice Exercise

Use the correct form of these verbs: change, come up, deal with, drop, get onto, talk about.

1. Can we ____________ a different subject please? I really don’t like talking about other people behind their backs.
2. When I asked him about his job, he just ____________ the subject like a hot potato!
3. How did we ____________ the subject of your mother? I thought we were discussing holidays.
4. His poems often ____________ the subject of death.
5. I asked Richard about the money he owed me, but he just ____________ the subject and started talking about his health problems.
6. We didn’t intend talking about his divorce. The subject just ____________ in conversation.

Tip for IELTS: In Speaking Part 2, if the examiner asks about personal experiences, use natural transitions like “That subject just came up when we were chatting” instead of rigid sentence structures.

2. Common Adjective Collocations with Subject

Some adjectives frequently describe subjects. Knowing these can help you express emotions, sensitivity, or academic contexts.

Practice Exercise

Use these adjectives: cheerful, chosen, pet, complex, taboo, touchy.

1. Death is a ____________ subject in many western societies. People tend not to talk openly about it.
2. Can we talk about a more ____________ subject? Funerals aren’t a very happy thing to talk about.
3. Once he gets onto his ____________ subject of football hooligans, there’s no stopping him.
4. I can’t understand why the break-up of her marriage is still such a ____________ subject. Surely she can talk about it now without getting upset.
5. In the examination, each candidate has to talk for two minutes on their ____________ subject.
6. Whether scientists should be free to experiment on human embryos is a very ____________ subject.

Academic Meaning of “Subject”

In academic contexts, subject also refers to areas of study.

Use these adjectives: favourite, core, compulsory.

1. Everybody has to take English. It’s a ____________ subject in our school system.
2. Chemistry and biology are my ____________ subjects.
3. You have to take six ____________ subjects and two optional ones.

Tip for IELTS Writing: In Task 2, if you’re asked about education, use collocations like “core subject” and “compulsory subject” to demonstrate precise vocabulary.

3. On the Subject

This phrase often introduces opinions, authority, or information.

Practice Exercise

Use these words: authority, briefly, information, holidays, nothing, views.

1. I have ____________ further to say on the subject of your wedding. As far as I’m concerned, the matter is closed.
2. We only touched ____________ on the subject of salaries during the meeting.
3. The Pope’s ____________ on the subject are well known.
4. She’s the leading ____________ on the subject of South American butterflies. She knows pretty well everything there is to know on the subject.
5. I’ve read every scrap of ____________ I can find on the subject.
6. Oh, on the subject of ____________, have you thought where we could be going this summer

Tip for IELTS Speaking: Use expressions like “On the subject of health…” to smoothly transition to new points. This makes your answers more cohesive.

4. Be the Subject of

This structure is often used in passive voice, common in academic and formal contexts.

Practice Exercise

Use these nouns: concern, debate, discrimination, speculation.

1. The Minister’s controversial views on immigration have been the subject of much ____________ in the media.
2. We encourage any employee who has been the subject of ____________ to report it immediately.
3. Her private life is the subject of much ____________ in the press at the moment.
4. The huge number of heavy vehicles passing through the village has been a subject of ____________ this year.

Tip for IELTS Writing: In Task 2, use this collocation to discuss issues:

• “Climate change has been the subject of heated debate for decades.”
• “Immigration policies remain the subject of concern in many countries.”

5. Notes on Introducing a Subject

When you want to raise or mention a topic, native speakers use specific verbs. Examples:

• Broach the subject → introduce a difficult or sensitive issue.
• Bring up the subject → mention something in conversation.
• Raise the subject → highlight a point for discussion.
• Mention the subject → casually refer to it.

IELTS Usage: In Speaking Part 3, if asked about sensitive topics like politics or education, you can say:

• “I’m not sure how to broach the subject, but I think…”
• “I’d like to raise the subject of climate change because it’s crucial nowadays.”

Answer Key

Overall, the word subject is more than just an academic topic, it can describe sensitive issues, transitions in conversation, or areas of study. Mastering its collocations helps you speak naturally in IELTS Speaking, write with precision in IELTS Writing, and overall increase your IELTS Band Score. Practice these exercises, apply the collocations in real contexts, and you’ll notice a clear improvement in your fluency and vocabulary range. 

For those aiming for top scores, following the IELTS Exam Preparation Tips for Band Score of 8+ can further enhance your vocabulary and overall test performance.

Also Check: 

• Improve Your Vocabulary for IELTS – Key Word: Space
• Improve Your Vocabulary for IELTS – Key Word: Size
• Grammar For IELTS: Expressions Of Quantity
• Grammar For IELTS : The Common Grammars And Sentence Structures In English (Part 1
• Grammar For IELTS : The Common Grammars And Sentence Structures In English (Part 2)
• Using Contrast in IELTS Speaking & Writing: Advanced Grammar in IELTS
• 100+ Advanced Vocabulary Word List for IELTS (PDF Available)
• Especially vs Specially for IELTS Grammar: Lessons, Examples, Usage & Exercise