Collocation Match
One verb, three options, one right partner. Twelve questions on the word pairings natives use without thinking.
- Main skill: Vocabulary
- Level: CEFR A2 to B1
- Age: Teens & adults
- Typical round: About 5 minutes
For teachers Level, timing and a classroom note
What it practises: verb-noun collocations with make, do, take and have
- collocations
- word partners
- Level
- CEFR A2 to B1
- Age band
- Teens & adults
- One round
- About 5 minutes
- Works best
- Pairs
Put two learners on one device and make them agree before tapping; each answer explains which verb the two rejected options belong with.
✓ Teaches after the answer: this game shows an explanation, definition or worked answer, not just a score.
Follow-up practice: Odd One Out, Synonym Match, Idiom Match.
How to play
- Read the prompt — a base word with a blank, like "make ______".
- Tap whichever of the three options really goes with it.
- Read the note that follows: it names the verb each wrong option belongs to.
- Answer all twelve questions to finish and earn your stars.
About Collocation Match
Collocation Match is a free English vocabulary game about word partnerships — the combinations native speakers always use without thinking. In English you make a decision (not do one), you talk about heavy rain (not strong rain), and you eat fast food (not quick food). Each question puts a base word and a blank on screen — "make ______" — with three options underneath. Exactly one of them collocates. Tap it and move on; a round is twelve questions.
The two wrong options are the whole design. They are never nonsense words: they are real English phrases that belong to a different verb. Under "make ______" you might see homework and a photo, and both are perfectly good English — you DO homework and you TAKE a photo. That contrast is what teaches the pattern, and it is why the feedback after every tap is a one-line note of exactly that shape: "You DO homework and TAKE a photo — but you MAKE a decision."
The bank holds 105 hand-written items at A1 to B1, covering the big delexical verbs — make, do, take, have, get, give, go, come — plus everyday adjective-noun pairs like heavy rain, fast food and strong coffee. A learner who says "do a mistake" will be understood, but "make a mistake" is what every native speaker expects, and what examiners reward under lexical resource. Rounds are short and freely replayable, with a fresh twelve drawn each time. Collocation Match suits A1 to B1 learners building natural-sounding English, IELTS and Cambridge candidates, and teachers who want a quick warm-up with an immediate payoff in writing and speech. Free to play, no sign-up needed.
Why play Collocation Match?
- ✓ Collocations are what make English sound natural — and examiners reward them.
- ✓ Wrong options are real collocations of other verbs, so every question teaches three pairings.
- ✓ 105 hand-written items across make, do, take, have, get, give, go and come.
- ✓ Twelve-question rounds are short and freely replayable — no daily lockout.
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← All Vocabulary GamesFrequently asked questions
What is a collocation?
A collocation is a pair or group of words that native speakers habitually use together — make a decision, heavy rain, fast food, catch a cold. The individual words could in theory be swapped for synonyms, but the fixed combination is what sounds natural. English has thousands of them, and they have to be learned as whole units.
How do I play Collocation Match?
Each question shows a base word with a blank — "make ______", "take ______", "heavy ______" — and three options below it. Tap the one that really collocates. The answer is graded on the server, so the right option is never sitting in the page waiting to be found. After your tap the correct option is marked and a one-line note explains it by naming which verb the other two options belong to. Twelve questions make a round.
Why are collocations important for ESL learners?
Because they are the difference between correct English and natural English. "Do a mistake" is understandable but wrong; "make a mistake" is the real collocation. IELTS and Cambridge examiners explicitly reward collocational accuracy under lexical resource, so drilling word partners lifts both your speech and your scores.
What level is Collocation Match for?
The 105 items are pitched at A1 to B1 — the high-frequency verb-noun and adjective-noun partnerships every learner needs first, like take a photo, make a decision, do the shopping, heavy traffic and strong coffee. Beginners can play from day one, and intermediate learners will still find combinations that fix long-standing habits. Items are drawn at random, so there is no level to choose.
Is Collocation Match free and replayable?
Yes. The game is completely free with no ads inside gameplay and no account required. It is not a daily puzzle — every round draws a fresh twelve questions from the 105-item bank, so you can play as many rounds as you like, any day, and keep meeting new word partners. Finishing a round scores you one to three stars based on how many you got right.