Collocation
The habitual association of particular words together, such as 'strong coffee' but 'powerful argument'. Collocations show the conventional pairings valued by language communities.
Real World
Tabloid newspapers collocate 'immigrant' with words like 'flood', 'wave', and 'swarm' — a pattern studied by Lancaster University researchers who found these pairings shape public perception of migration as a natural disaster.
Exam Focus
Analyse what repeated collocations reveal about attitudes or ideology, not just that two words appear together.
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