Speaker 0 | 00:01.920
Hey everyone and welcome back. Ready for another deep dive with us? Today we’re going to be looking at some really interesting collocations.
Speaker 1 | 00:09.722
These are word pairings that, well, you might not think about too much when you’re just learning vocab, but they can totally change how you sound. Yeah,
Speaker 0 | 00:18.884
for sure. Like you can know all the right words, but if you’re not putting them together in the right way,
Speaker 1 | 00:23.686
it’s not going to sound natural.
Speaker 0 | 00:24.946
Exactly.
Speaker 1 | 00:25.566
So are we ready to jump in then?
Speaker 0 | 00:27.147
I think so. Let’s start with interval.
Speaker 1 | 00:29.207
All right, interval.
Speaker 0 | 00:30.944
We’ve got a bunch of collocations here. Short interval, brief interval, long interval. Pretty straightforward, right? But then we’ve also got regular interval, at intervals, and time interval.
Speaker 1 | 00:44.291
And even though those all use interval, they all mean slightly different things.
Speaker 0 | 00:49.273
Okay, so let’s break it down. What about short interval versus brief interval?
Speaker 1 | 00:53.276
Okay, so think about like a concert. Okay. If there’s a short interval, it’s probably planned, right?
Speaker 0 | 00:58.959
Yeah, intermission.
Speaker 1 | 01:00.059
Right. But if there’s a brief interval, it’s probably because maybe there’s a technical problem or something.
Speaker 0 | 01:05.901
Ooh, that’s a good distinction. So brief is more for something unexpected.
Speaker 1 | 01:10.682
Exactly.
Speaker 0 | 01:11.343
And then there’s regular interval. That sounds more, I don’t know, scheduled.
Speaker 1 | 01:15.264
Like taking medication.
Speaker 0 | 01:16.684
Yeah, like a meeting every week. And then time interval. That one sounds kind of technical.
Speaker 1 | 01:21.746
It is. You probably see that in like a scientific paper or something. It’s about measuring exactly how much time is between two things.
Speaker 0 | 01:27.747
Cool. Okay, so even a word like interval, which seems pretty simple, can make a big difference depending on what other words you put with it.
Speaker 1 | 01:35.485
Definitely. And you know what else can really change the meaning of a sentence? The word invisible.
Speaker 0 | 01:41.949
Ooh, yeah, invisible, like an invisible force. That sounds kind of mysterious.
Speaker 1 | 01:46.672
Yeah, it does, doesn’t it? Like, think about gravity. We can’t see it, but it’s definitely there.
Speaker 0 | 01:50.996
Or like social pressure.
Speaker 1 | 01:52.477
Yeah, good one. You don’t necessarily see it, but you can definitely feel it.
Speaker 0 | 01:56.099
Totally. Okay, what about invisible barrier?
Speaker 1 | 01:59.225
Ooh, that’s a good one. Could be something physical, but often it’s more metaphorical.
Speaker 0 | 02:04.887
Like prejudice.
Speaker 1 | 02:06.108
Exactly. Or maybe even your own fears or limiting beliefs holding you back.
Speaker 0 | 02:10.750
It’s like there’s a whole world of invisible things that are impacting us all the time.
Speaker 1 | 02:14.231
Right. And sometimes those things can be really powerful.
Speaker 0 | 02:17.133
Like the invisible hand in economics.
Speaker 1 | 02:19.314
Yeah, that’s a classic example.
Speaker 0 | 02:20.814
Like a force that guides the market. Yeah. Even though you can’t.
Speaker 1 | 02:23.684
you know point to it or anything exactly okay now let’s think about some more literal uses of invisible like almost invisible oh like a chameleon blending in yeah or become invisible which is more like you know a fantasy or a superpower yeah who hasn’t wished they could become invisible at some point right i think it’s interesting to think about why we’re so fascinated by that idea maybe
Speaker 0 | 02:46.276
it’s because we all feel vulnerable sometimes yeah like we want to hide or escape notice it’s a really powerful idea
Speaker 1 | 02:52.740
It is, and it shows how a single word, like invisible, can have so many different layers of meaning.
Speaker 0 | 02:59.621
Definitely. Okay, so we’ve seen how collocations can change the meaning of interval and invisible. But there’s a whole lot more to explore.
Speaker 1 | 03:09.544
Oh, yeah. We’re just getting started.
Speaker 0 | 03:11.365
Stay tuned, because we’re about to dive into even more fascinating word pairings.
Speaker 1 | 03:15.546
You know, speaking of invisible forces, that kind of makes me think about destiny.
Speaker 0 | 03:19.707
Ooh, destiny. Yeah. Big topic.
Speaker 1 | 03:22.328
It is. We’ve got control destiny, accept destiny, shape destiny, seal destiny, share destiny, and destiny awaits.
Speaker 0 | 03:35.313
Destiny awaits. I like that one.
Speaker 1 | 03:37.494
Right. And of course, we can’t forget manifest destiny.
Speaker 0 | 03:40.595
Which is a whole other can of worms.
Speaker 1 | 03:42.016
Yeah, definitely. But it’s interesting how all of these collocations with destiny kind of make you think about free will.
Speaker 0 | 03:48.819
Yeah. Like, do we actually have it? any control over our lives.
Speaker 1 | 03:51.840
Right. Some of these seem to suggest that we do.
Speaker 0 | 03:54.222
Like control destiny or shape destiny.
Speaker 1 | 03:57.063
But then you’ve got things like accept destiny or seal destiny, which sound a lot more like, well, fate.
Speaker 0 | 04:02.927
Yeah. It’s like, it doesn’t matter what you do. Things are going to happen the way they’re going to happen.
Speaker 1 | 04:06.729
And then destiny awaits. It’s like there’s this big plan out there for you.
Speaker 0 | 04:12.272
You’re just waiting to find out what it is.
Speaker 1 | 04:13.993
It’s a pretty powerful idea. And manifest destiny. Well, that one has definitely played a…
Speaker 0 | 04:18.856
big role in history for sure but let’s move on from all this destiny talk to something a bit more well spectacular spectacle yes all right so we’ve got grand spectacle visual spectacle spectacle of nature ooh impressive spectacle magnificent spectacle spectacle of color a lot of big impressive words in there they are aren’t they like spectacle is already a pretty strong word but when you add those other words it’s like wow
Speaker 1 | 04:48.056
Yeah, like you’re really trying to emphasize how amazing something is.
Speaker 0 | 04:51.119
Right, like fireworks or a huge parade or even just like a beautiful sunset.
Speaker 1 | 04:55.943
Anything that really grabs your attention.
Speaker 0 | 04:57.505
But then there’s making a spectacle of oneself, which is not so positive.
Speaker 1 | 05:01.609
Yeah, that one means like doing something embarrassing in public.
Speaker 0 | 05:04.712
So spectacle can be good or bad. It just depends on how you use it.
Speaker 1 | 05:07.955
That’s the thing with collocations, right? The context really matters.
Speaker 0 | 05:12.071
Okay, so we’ve talked about destiny and spectacle. What about something a bit more, I don’t know, unsettling?
Speaker 1 | 05:18.855
Unsettling, like uneasy.
Speaker 0 | 05:21.177
Yeah, uneasy. We’ve got feel uneasy, make someone uneasy, uneasy about the future. Ooh, relatable.
Speaker 1 | 05:28.903
It is, isn’t it?
Speaker 0 | 05:30.224
We’ve also got uneasy feeling, look uneasy, and uneasy silence.
Speaker 1 | 05:36.268
Uneasy silence is a good one. It’s like you can just feel attention.
Speaker 0 | 05:39.751
Yeah, like when you know something’s wrong, but nobody’s saying anything.
Speaker 1 | 05:42.873
Or like right before something big is about to happen.
Speaker 0 | 05:45.475
Definitely. Okay, let’s switch gears completely. What about machinery? A much more concrete topic, I think. All right,
Speaker 1 | 05:51.700
machinery. We have operate machinery, industrial machinery, agricultural machinery, and then machinery breakdown, install machinery, maintain machinery, heavy machinery.
Speaker 0 | 06:02.849
I never really thought about it before, but like machinery is everywhere.
Speaker 1 | 06:06.292
Yeah, it really is. From the cars we drive to the food we eat. So much of our world depends on machinery.
Speaker 0 | 06:12.108
It’s kind of amazing when you think about it. Right. But those collocations also highlight some of the downsides.
Speaker 1 | 06:16.731
Like machinery breakdown.
Speaker 0 | 06:18.012
Right. That could be a huge problem.
Speaker 1 | 06:19.713
And then there’s maintain machinery, which reminds us that all this stuff needs to be taken care of.
Speaker 0 | 06:25.716
Yeah, it’s not all just robots doing everything for us yet. Okay, so from Destiny and Spectacle to the world of machines, what’s next?
Speaker 1 | 06:36.731
Well, unfortunately, something we all experience at some point, sickness.
Speaker 0 | 06:41.533
Ooh, yeah. Not so fun, but definitely important to talk about. So we have chronic sickness, recover from sickness, sickness benefit, sickness absence, and then seasickness, motion sickness, morning sickness.
Speaker 1 | 06:54.941
That covers a pretty wide range, huh?
Speaker 0 | 06:56.642
It does. Like chronic sickness makes me think about people who are dealing with long-term health issues.
Speaker 1 | 07:01.985
And recover from sickness gives us some hope, right? things can get better.
Speaker 0 | 07:05.427
Exactly. But then sickness benefit and sickness absence remind us that there’s a whole practical side to being sick too.
Speaker 1 | 07:11.330
Right. It’s not just about how you feel physically. It can impact your work, your finances, your whole life.
Speaker 0 | 07:16.092
Yeah. And then you’ve got those more specific types of sickness, like seasickness and motion sickness. I hate that feeling.
Speaker 1 | 07:22.314
Me too. And of course, morning sickness is something that a lot of people experience.
Speaker 0 | 07:26.977
So yeah, lots of different types of sickness, but they all have a pretty big impact on our lives. Okay, so we’ve talked about all kinds of things. Sickness, machinery, even destiny.
Speaker 1 | 07:37.896
Right. We’ve covered a lot of ground.
Speaker 0 | 07:39.937
But let’s switch gears again and talk about a word that just makes me think of speed. Dash. Dash. All right. We got make a dash, dash through, dash off. Ooh, last minute dash. I feel like that’s me all the time.
Speaker 1 | 07:53.381
Yeah, me too. Quick dash, dash across, and then, hmm, this one’s a little different. Dash hopes.
Speaker 0 | 07:59.003
Yeah, that one’s more metaphorical, isn’t it?
Speaker 1 | 08:00.664
It is. It’s like when something you were really looking forward to suddenly doesn’t happen.
Speaker 0 | 08:04.507
Ah, yeah. Like when you think you’re going to get that promotion, but then… No one else gets it. Exactly. Okay, so dash can be literal or figurative, but it always has this sense of urgency.
Speaker 1 | 08:16.456
Okay, let’s move on to trade. And specifically, we’re going to focus on timber.
Speaker 0 | 08:21.940
Timber. Okay, so we have timber trade, timber frame, timber production. timber harvesting, timber supplier, and then, let’s see, timber structure and timber flooring.
Speaker 1 | 08:33.124
Wow. Timber is used for a lot of things.
Speaker 0 | 08:35.785
It is. I mean, it makes sense. Wood is pretty important.
Speaker 1 | 08:38.066
Yeah. It’s used in construction, furniture making. I mean, think about how many things in your house are made of wood.
Speaker 0 | 08:42.967
Oh, yeah, for sure. My desk, my floor, even some of my walls.
Speaker 1 | 08:47.188
Exactly. So, collocations like timber production and timber harvesting remind us where all this wood comes from.
Speaker 0 | 08:54.250
And that it’s important to think about.
Speaker 1 | 08:56.139
you know the environment right because the choices we make about what we buy can actually impact forests all over the world it’s pretty amazing how connected everything is okay so from the very tangible world of timber to something much more abstract representation all right representation so we have proportional representation diplomatic representation legal representation accurate representation visual representation artistic representation graphical representation. Wow.
Speaker 0 | 09:27.204
That’s a lot of different types of representation.
Speaker 1 | 09:29.305
It really shows how important this idea is, right? Like in politics, you’ve got proportional representation.
Speaker 0 | 09:35.087
Right, which is about making sure everyone’s voice is heard.
Speaker 1 | 09:37.629
And then there’s diplomatic representation and legal representation, where you need someone to, well, represent you.
Speaker 0 | 09:45.452
Because those are complicated things. Okay, and then what about like artistic representation?
Speaker 1 | 09:50.095
That’s how artists use their work to express ideas or tell stories.
Speaker 0 | 09:54.298
It’s not just about like painting a picture of something exactly as it is.
Speaker 1 | 09:57.661
Right. And then there’s graphical representation, which is more about using charts and graphs to show information.
Speaker 0 | 10:03.886
Like those infographics you see online all the time.
Speaker 1 | 10:06.107
Exactly. So all these different types of representation, they help us understand the world around us.
Speaker 0 | 10:12.352
And to communicate with each other.
Speaker 1 | 10:13.734
For sure. All right. Ready to zoom out even further.
Speaker 0 | 10:17.412
Ooh, I like where this is going.
Speaker 1 | 10:19.112
Let’s talk about spheres.
Speaker 0 | 10:20.613
The spheres,
Speaker 1 | 10:21.354
okay. We’ve got public sphere, private sphere, social sphere, economic sphere, cultural sphere, intellectual sphere.
Speaker 0 | 10:31.219
There’s like all the different areas of life.
Speaker 1 | 10:33.320
Exactly, and they all overlap in really interesting ways.
Speaker 0 | 10:36.322
Yeah, like what happens in the economic sphere definitely affects the social sphere.
Speaker 1 | 10:41.304
Right, and what people are thinking and talking about in the intellectual sphere… can end up changing the public sphere.
Speaker 0 | 10:48.244
It’s kind of like a web, isn’t it? Everything’s connected.
Speaker 1 | 10:50.325
It really is. Okay, let’s shift gears again. What about guilt?
Speaker 0 | 10:54.148
Guilt. Ooh, yeah. Everyone’s felt that at some point. So we have sense of guilt, overcome guilt, feel guilt, prove guilt, bear guilt, admit guilt.
Speaker 1 | 11:05.656
Whoa. Guilt is a powerful emotion. It can really weigh you down.
Speaker 0 | 11:10.359
It can. Like, bear guilt makes me think of, I don’t know, carrying something heavy.
Speaker 1 | 11:14.302
Yeah. And prove guilt and admit guilt. Those are more about like legal stuff.
Speaker 0 | 11:19.104
But overcome guilt. That sounds more hopeful, right? Like you can work through those.
Speaker 1 | 11:22.306
Exactly. We all make mistakes. But learning to forgive yourself, that’s really important.
Speaker 0 | 11:27.768
Definitely. All right. So from guilt to something a bit more exciting. Frontier.
Speaker 1 | 11:33.190
Frontier. Love it.
Speaker 0 | 11:34.751
Okay. So we have open frontier, cross the frontier, frontier settlement, frontier town, expand the frontier, push back the frontier, frontier research.
Speaker 1 | 11:42.775
I feel like frontier just makes me think about possibility.
Speaker 0 | 11:45.436
Yeah, like anything is possible.
Speaker 1 | 11:46.817
Right. It’s about exploring the unknown, whether that’s a physical place or like in frontier research.
Speaker 0 | 11:52.141
Yeah, scientists and researchers are always pushing the boundaries of what we know.
Speaker 1 | 11:55.443
It’s pretty amazing to think about. Okay, ready for our final set of collocations.
Speaker 0 | 12:00.367
I’m ready.
Speaker 1 | 12:00.887
Let’s talk about glow.
Speaker 0 | 12:03.229
Glow. I like this one.
Speaker 1 | 12:05.390
Yeah, glow has such a nice warm feeling to it. So we have faint glow, inner glow. Glow with pry, warm glow, gentle glow, radiant glow.
Speaker 0 | 12:17.106
And glow in the dark. That one’s fun.
Speaker 1 | 12:19.207
Right. It’s like a kid’s toy.
Speaker 0 | 12:20.989
But inner glow, that’s more about like how you feel inside,
Speaker 1 | 12:24.191
right? It is. Like when you’re really happy or proud of yourself, it’s that kind of radiance that comes from within.
Speaker 0 | 12:29.915
I like that. Okay. So glow can be literal, like the light from a fire, or it can be more about like happiness and positivity.
Speaker 1 | 12:38.220
And you know what? That kind of makes me think about wealth.
Speaker 0 | 12:41.623
Wealth. Okay, how so? Well,
Speaker 1 | 12:43.683
when we think about wealth, we often think about money and possessions.
Speaker 0 | 12:47.585
Yeah, that’s true. But there’s more to it than that, right?
Speaker 1 | 12:50.366
Exactly. Like wealthy family, wealthy nation, wealthy businessman, wealthy lifestyle, wealthy background, wealthy elite. Those all focus on material wealth. But true wealth is also about having good relationships, being healthy, feeling fulfilled.
Speaker 0 | 13:06.993
About all those things that make you feel like you’re really glowing from the inside out.
Speaker 1 | 13:10.174
Exactly. So as we wrap up this deep dive into collocations, maybe that’s something for everyone to think about.
Speaker 0 | 13:16.513
Yeah. What does wealth really mean to you? And how can we use these amazing word pairings to express ourselves more clearly and creatively?
Speaker 1 | 13:24.518
Keep exploring, keep learning and keep having fun with the English language.
Speaker 0 | 13:28.860
Thanks for joining us, everyone. And we’ll see you next time for another deep dive.