Using Collocation to Boost Your IELTS Score – Key Word: idea

Key Word: idea

1          Verb + idea

Use the correct form of these verbs:

consider          come up with              get across

reject               go along with              sell

1. He’s a really good speaker. He has that rare ability to _________ complex ideas in the kind of language everybody can understand.
2. We’ve been _________ the idea of moving to a smaller flat now that the children have left home. We’ve actually been toying with the idea for a year or so.
3. The committee needs to _________ some ideas for raising funds for the new church. Does anybody have any good ideas?
4. She’s always _________ the idea of getting married. She says she prefers the freedom of being single.
5. I think my proposal would help improve the company, but I’m having a lot of trouble _________ the idea to my boss. He’s not convinced that it would work.
6. She’ll never _________ the idea, so it’s not worth mentioning it to her.

2          Liking and disliking ideas

Study the seven expressions in bold:

1. I want to become a racing driver but my father is dead against the idea.
2. She has an open mind and she is always receptive to new ideas.
3. In the UK there is a lot of resistance to the idea of a common currency. Many people remain bitterly opposed to this idea.
4. I’m not wild about the idea of going to boarding school, but I have no choice in the matter.
5. On the whole, I’m in favour of the idea. >Yes. We’re also sold on the idea. We think it can only improve the quality of the service.
6. Some politicians were extremely hostile to the idea of giving free needles to drug addicts.

Now fill in the prepositions. Then mark them:

(L) = like or (D) = dislike:

1. dead                                             e.         not wild
2. receptive                                     f.          in favour
3. a lot of resistance                       g.         sold
4. bitterly opposed                         h.         hostile

3          Common adjective collocations

Use these adjectives in the sentences below:

brilliant                       faintest

half-baked                   fixed

funny                          original

vague                          fair

1. The company is looking for a creative person with fresh and ________ ideas.
2. You’ll never get my mother to change her mind on anything! She has very________ ideas on almost every subject.
3. What a ________idea! Why didn’t I think of that! How do you always manage to come up with the bright ideas?
4. He’s got some strange ideas on bringing up kids. >Yes, Frank does have some________ ideas at times, doesn’t he?
5. I think I’ve got a________ idea of what to do, but I’ll get back to you if I have any problems.
6. I haven’t the ________ idea what you’re talking about. I don’t know anything about your missing bag!
7. I wish they would tell me what I’m meant to be doing in more detail. At the moment I only have a very ________ idea what my job is.
8. I wish Terry would work out his ideas properly. He keeps coming up with_______ ideas – which nobody takes seriously.

ANSWER KEY

Ex 1:

1 get across        2. considering           3. come up with

4 rejected          5. selling                    6. go along with

Ex 2:

1. dead against (D)
2. receptive to (L)
3. a lot of resistance to (D)
4. bitterly opposed to (D)
5. not wild about (D)
6. in favour of (L)
7. sold on (L)
8. hostile to (D)

Ex 3:

1 original         2. fixed            3. brilliant                    4. funny           5. fair

6 faintest         7. vague           8. half-baked

Also check :

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