Vocabulary: Collocations & Idiomatic Language (B2) - Lesson 3: Collocations with Prepositions & Adverbs

Lesson 3: Collocations with Prepositions & Adverbs

Adding Precision and Emphasis

You know that verbs and nouns can be partners, and adjectives and nouns can be partners. Now, let's explore two more important types of collocations¹: adjectives that have a fixed preposition² partner, and adverbs³ that naturally go with certain adjectives to add emphasis.

Part 1: Adjective + Preposition Collocations

Many adjectives are almost always followed by the same preposition. You should learn these as a single chunk.

Adjective + Preposition	Example Sentence
interested in	I am interested in learning about Cambodian history.
good at	She is very good at learning new languages.
afraid of	Many people are afraid of snakes.
proud of	My parents are very proud of my success.
different from / to	This restaurant is different from the one we visited yesterday.
aware of	Are you aware of the new policy at work?

Part 2: Adverb + Adjective Collocations

We often use specific adverbs to strengthen the meaning of certain adjectives. While you can say "very good," using a stronger collocation sounds more advanced and natural.

Adverb + Adjective	Meaning	Example Sentence
utterly ridiculous	completely silly or unreasonable	The idea that he could finish the project in one day was utterly ridiculous.
deeply concerned	very worried	The doctors are deeply concerned about his health.
highly successful	achieving a great deal	She became a highly successful business owner.
bitterly disappointed	extremely unhappy about a result	I was bitterly disappointed when I failed the exam.
ridiculously cheap	surprisingly inexpensive	The clothes at that market were ridiculously cheap.

Usage Note: The Danger of Direct Translation

Prepositions are one of the most difficult parts of English because they do not translate directly from other languages like Khmer. For example, in English, you are 'afraid of' something. You must memorize this partnership.

The Best Strategy: Do not try to translate prepositions. When you learn a new adjective like 'proud', learn the *entire chunk* "proud of". Put the whole phrase in your vocabulary notebook.

In Conversation

Srey is comforting Bora after he received his exam results.

Bora: I was bitterly disappointed with my exam results. I thought I would do better.

Srey: Don't worry about it. You are very good at mathematics, but this test was ridiculously difficult.

Bora: I'm just afraid of telling my parents. I don't want them to think I'm lazy.

Srey: I'm sure they will be understanding. They are very proud of all your hard work. Are you aware of the new study group?

Bora: No, what is it?

Srey: It's for students who want to become highly successful. I'm very interested in joining.

Bora: Me too! I'm not deeply concerned about one bad grade, but I do want to improve.

quiz Check Your Understanding

1. She is very good ______ painting.

• a) in
• b) at
• c) on

Click to see the answer

Answer: b) at (The collocation is 'good at').

2. I was ______ disappointed when my team lost the final match.

• a) highly
• b) deeply
• c) bitterly

Click to see the answer

Answer: c) bitterly (This is a strong, natural collocation).

3. Which of these is a strong Adverb + Adjective collocation?

• a) very good
• b) deeply concerned
• c) a bit nice

Click to see the answer

Answer: b) deeply concerned

edit Your Mission

1. My Collocations: Complete these sentences about yourself: 1. I am interested ______ ______. 2. I am good ______ ______. 3. I am proud ______ ______.
2. Find Your Own: The adjective 'famous' is often followed by a preposition. What is it? (Hint: "He is famous ___ his singing.") Write a sentence.
3. Speak: Your mission is to use one adjective + preposition collocation and one adverb + adjective collocation in a conversation. (e.g., "I am not afraid of spiders." "The weather today is ridiculously hot.")

book Lesson Glossary

1. Preposition (noun) - Khmer: ធ្នាក់ - A word that shows the relationship of a noun to another word (e.g., in, on, at, for, to). ↩
2. Collocation (noun) - Khmer: ការរួមបញ្ចូលគ្នា - A group of words that are often used together in a way that sounds natural. ↩
3. Adverb (noun) - Khmer: គុណកិរិយា - A word that describes a verb, an adjective, or another adverb. ↩
4. interested in (collocation) ដែលចាប់អារម្មណ៍លើ - Having a feeling of wanting to learn more about something. ↩
5. good at (collocation) ពូកែខាង - To be skillful in a particular area. ↩
6. proud of (collocation) មានមោទនភាពចំពោះ - Feeling deep pleasure or satisfaction in an achievement. ↩
7. bitterly disappointed (collocation) ដែលខកចិត្ត​យ៉ាង​ខ្លាំង - To be extremely unhappy because something did not happen as you hoped. ↩