List of Adjective Collocations  I felt  guilty about  not visiting my parents

more often.
with ABOUT
Happy about
Angry about
 If there’s anything you’re not  happy about,
 I’m really  angry about  our losses on the stock
come and ask.
market!
Hopeful about
Annoyed about
 He is not very  hopeful about  the outcome of
 I was a little  annoyed about  the whole thing.
the interview.
Anxious about
Mad about
 The  drought  has made farmers  anxious
 Are you  mad about  your bad grade?
about  the harvest.
Nervous about
Careful about
 Consumers are very  nervous about  the
 He’s in a really foul temper so be  careful
future.
about  what you say to him.
Obsessed about
Careless about
 I think you should try to stop  obsessing
 He could be very  careless about  his future.
about  food.
Certain about
Optimistic about
 He was quite  certain about  his attacker’s
 She’s not very  optimistic about  the outcome
identity.
of the talks.
Concerned about
Pessimistic about
 I’m a bit  concerned about  your health.
 The doctors are  pessimistic about  his chances
Crazy about of recovery.

 I’m not  crazy about  Chinese food. Puzzled about

Curious about  Management are still  puzzling about  how the

accident could have happened.
 They were very  curious about  the people who
lived upstairs. Sensitive about

Depressed about  He’s very  sensitive about  his weight.

 She felt very  depressed about  the future. Serious about

Enthusiastic about  Is she  serious about  wanting to sell the

house?
 You don’t sound very  enthusiastic about  the
idea. Sorry about

Excited about  I’m very  sorry about  losing your book.

 He’s  excited about  his birthday party next Sure about

week.
 Are you  sure about  that?
Furious about
Sympathetic about
 The boss was  furious about  the past quarter’s
 He suffers from back trouble too, so he was
losses.
very  sympathetic about  my problem.
Guilty about
Terrible about
  Anyway, what’s so  terrible about  a woman  They are  excellent at  planning fun parties.
wearing pants?
Excited at
Upset about
 I’m really  excited at  the  prospect  of working
 I’m  upset about  the increasing amount of abroad.
violence in this world.
Good at
Worried about
 She is  good at  solving problems.
 He’s not  worried about  his upcoming
Hopeless at
examinations.
 Unfortunately, I’m  hopeless at  being on time.
Wrong about
Mad at
 You were  wrong about  Tom; he’s not married
after all.  Please don’t be  mad at  me!

List of Adjective Collocations Presented at

with AT  Most fathers wish to be  present at  the birth

Amazed at of their child.

 She was  amazed at  how calm she felt after Skilled at
the accident.  My mother is very  skilled at  dressmaking.
Angry at Successful at
 He’s  angry at  his friend for cheating on the  I wasn’t very  successful at  keeping the news
test. secret.
Annoyed at Surprised at
 She was beginning to get very  annoyed at  me  The teacher was  surprised at  the student’s
about my carelessness. question.
Awful at Terrible at
 I’m  awful at  names.  Dustin is  terrible at  texting.
Bad at
List of Adjective Collocations

with FOR
Jack is really  bad at  keeping his promises.

Brilliant at Eligible for

 He’s  brilliant at  football.  Only those over 70 are  eligible for  the special
payment.
Clever at
Eager for
 Fiona is very  clever at  physics.
 She is  eager for  her parents’ approval.
Delighted at
Late for
 She was  delighted at  the news of the
wedding.  You’ll be  late for  your flight if you don’t hurry
up.
Disappointed at
Mean for
 They were bitterly  disappointed at  the result
of the game.  The books with large print are  meant
for  partially sighted readers.
Excellent at
Qualified for
  What makes you think that you are  qualified  I was not  prepared for  all the problems it
for  this job? caused.

Thankful for Ready for

 He wasn’t badly hurt—that’s something to  The army are said to be  ready for  action.
be  thankful for.
Renowned for
Concerned for
 She is  renowned  for  her patience.
 I’m a bit  concerned for  your health.
Responsible for something
Clever for
 You’ll have to speak to John, he’s  responsible
 Charlie has a  clever  idea/plan  for  getting us for  customer complaints.
out of our present difficulties.
Serious for
Happy for
 Be  serious for  a moment; this is important.
 I’m very  happy for  you.
Suitable for
True for
 This programme is not  suitable for  children.
 Alcohol should be consumed in moderation,
Thirsty for
and this is particularly  true for  pregnant
women.  Are you  thirsty for  a soda? I am!
Good for Famous for
 Have you ever heard that confession is  good  She’s  famous for  her watercolor paintings.
for  the soul?
Sorry for
Free for
 I’m  sorry for  arriving so late to dinner.
 If Sarah is  free for  lunch I’ll take her out.

Bad for
List of Adjective Collocations
 He’s had another heart attack; things are
with TO
Happy to
looking  bad for  him, I’m afraid.
 We are  happy to  announce the engagement
Difficult for
of our daughter.
 It is  difficult for  me to hear you.
Delighted to
Grateful for
 I’d be absolutely  delighted to  come.
 She is so  grateful for  your help.
Pleased to
Hard for
 I was very  pleased to  be able to help.
 It is  hard for  us to understand you.
Concerned to
Known for
 He was  concerned to  hear that two of his
 She is  known for  her dirty tricks. trusted workers were leaving.

Notorious for Familiar to

 The country is  notorious for  its appalling  The smell is very  familiar to  everyone who
prison conditions. lives near a bakery

Prepared for Proud to

 I feel very  proud to  be a part of the team.

Kind to Cruel to

 She has always been very  kind to  me.  I can’t stand people who are  cruel to  animals.

Rude to Curious to

 He’s got no manners – he’s  rude to  everyone.  I was  curious to  find out what she had said.

Scared to Disappointed to

 People are  scared to  use the buses late at  He was  disappointed to  see she wasn’t at the
night. party.

Free to Eager to

 You are  free to  come and go as you please.  Everyone in the class seemed  eager to  learn.

Good to Eligible to

 It’s  good to  see you again.  When are you  eligible to  vote in your
country?
Nasty to
Exposed to
 Don’t be so  nasty to  your brother – he’s four
years younger than you!  The country became highly  exposed to  the
vagaries of international markets.
Nice to
Faithful to
 It’s  nice to  know you.
 He remained  faithful to  the ideals of the
Unkind to
party.
 It would be  unkind to  go without him.
Grateful to
Accustomed to
 I am extremely  grateful to  all the teachers for
 She had grown  accustomed to  his long their help.
absences.
Identical to
Addicted to
 Her dress is almost  identical to  mine.
 A lot of people nowadays have
Immune to
become  addicted to  the internet.
 Adults are often  immune to  German measles.
Allergic to
Indifferent to
 My dad’s  allergic to  pop music.
 The government cannot afford to
Anxious to
be  indifferent to  public opinion.
 I’m  anxious to  get home to open my presents.
Inferior to
Apposed to
 Modern music is often considered  inferior
 She remained bitterly  apposed to  the idea of to  that of the past.
moving abroad.
Keen to
Attached to
 John was very  keen to  help.
 I’ve never seen two people so  attached
Late to
to  each other.
 It’s too  late to  start complaining now.
Beneficial to
Limited to
 A stay in the country will be  beneficial to  his
health.
  Places on the bus are  limited to  50 – so book  It would be  unreasonable to  expect
early! somebody to come at such short notice.

Married to Wrong to

 She’s  married to  John.  We were  wrong to  assume that she’d agree.

Mean to
List of Adjective Collocations
 Don’t be so  mean to  your little brother!
with OF
Polite/impolite to Accused of

 He was too  polite to  point out my mistake.  He’s been  accused of  robbery.

Qualified to Afraid of

 I’m not  qualified to  give advice on such  Are you  afraid of  the dark?
matters.
Ashamed of
Related to
 I’m not  ashamed of  what I did.
 How are you  related to  him? Is he your
Aware of
cousin?
 Were you  aware of  the risks at the time?
Relevant to
Capable of
 Please speak later; your ideas are
not  relevant to  our discussion.  You are  capable of  better work than this.

Sad to Clever of

 I was  sad to  hear that they’d split up.  How  clever of  you to buy chocolate chip
cookies – they’re my favorites.
Sensitive to
Certain of
 She is very  sensitive to  other people’s
feelings.  He was quite  certain of  his attacker’s identity.

Similar to Conscious of

 I bought some new shoes which are  She’s very  conscious of  the problems
very  similar to  a pair I had before. involved.

Slow to Fond of

 She wasn’t  slow to  realize what was going  Over the years, I have grown quite  fond
on. of  her.

Superior to Free of

 This model is technically  superior to  its  It was several weeks before he was
competitors. completely  free of  pain.

Sympathetic to Generous of

 The party is considered to be  sympathetic  It was  generous of  him to offer to pay for us
to  welfare  reform. both.

Thankful to Frightened of

 I was  thankful to  see they’d all arrived safely.  What are you  frightened of?

Unreasonable to Full of
  His bookshelf is  full of  books.  She is  scared of  going out alone.

Guilty of Selfish of

 The jury found the defendant not  guilty of  the  It’s very  selfish of  him to just expect that Polly
offence. will do all the childcare.

Hopeful of Sensible of

 She is  hopeful of  returning to work soon.  She’s a  sensible  sort  of  person.

In charge of Sick of

 We are in  charge of  the party arrangements.  I’m  sick of  the way you’ve treated me.

In danger of Silly of

 You are  in danger of  being robbed.  How  silly of  me to expect them to help!

In favor of Suspicious of

 He is in favor of the new law.  They became  suspicious of  his behaviour and
contacted the police.
Innocent of
Sure of
 She is  innocent of  any wrongdoing.
 I hope you are  sure of  your facts.
Envious of
Stupid of
 They were  envious of  his success.
 It’s  stupid of  her to go out without a coat.
Jealous of
Tired of
 She’s  jealous of  my success.
 I’m sick and  tired of  all the  arguments.
Kind of
True of
 A crane is a  kind of  bird with very long legs
and neck.  Parents of young children often become
depressed, and this is especially  true of  single
Made of
parents.
 The house was  made of  wood with an iron
Typical of
roof.
 This kind of hot and spicy food is very  typical
Nasty of
of  the food in the south of the country.
 She has a  nasty  habit  of  picking on people in
Unkind of
meetings.
 It was  unkind of  you to take his toy away.
Nervous of
Clever of
 He had been  nervous of  inviting us.
 How  clever of  you to buy chocolate chip
Nice of
cookies – they’re my favorites.
 It was  nice of  you to give me a present
List of Adjective Collocations
Proud of
with WITH
 He was  proud of  himself for not giving up. Acquainted with
Rid of  Are you  acquainted with  your classmate?
 They got  rid of  that old car. Angry with
Scared of
  I’m really  angry with  John for his total lack of  I was  delighted with  my presents.
responsibility.
Familiar with
Annoyed with
 Are you  familiar with  the computer software
 He’s  annoyed with  Tim because he told his they use?
secret.
Disgusted with
Associated with
 I am  disgusted with  this dirty place.
 The cancer risks  associated with  smoking
Fed up with
have been well documented.
 He’s  fed up with  his job. He wants to quit.
Blessed with
Free with
 You are  blessed with  many talents.
 He’s too  free with  his opinions.
Bored with
Friendly/unfriendly with
 You get  bored with  doing the same thing
every day.  We soon became  friendly with  the couple
next door.
Busy with
Furious with
 The kids are  busy with  their homework.
 He was  furious with  himself for letting things
Careless with
get so out of control.
 Don’t be  careless with  your ATM card.
Furnished with
Clever with
 The room was  furnished with  carpets and
 My mother is very  clever with  her hands. chairs.

Comfortable with Generous with

 I’m not  comfortable with  the idea of leaving  You should be  generous with  your time.
her on her own.
Gentle with
Concerned with
 She was very  gentle with  the children.
 Her job is something  concerned
Happy with
with  computers.
 Are you  happy with  that arrangement?
Connected with
Impressed with
 The fall in retail sales is directly  connected
with  the decline in employment.  She was  suitably  impressed  with  the
painting.
Content with
Cluttered with
 Not  content with  stealing my boyfriend, she
has turned all my friends against me.  The floor was  cluttered with  my situation.
Coordinated with Lucky with
 Our program is  coordinated with  yours.  We were very  lucky with  the weather for our
village  barbecue.
Crowded with
Patient with
 The airport is  crowded with  stranded
travelers.  Be  patient with  her – she’s very young.
Delighted with Careful with
  Be  careful with  the glasses.  The teacher was  surprised by  the student’s
question.
Pleased with

 I was  pleased with  the present you gave me. List of Adjective Collocations
Popular with with IN
Comfortable in
 That song was  popular with  people from my
father’s generation.  I don’t feel  comfortable in  high heels.

Satisfied with Connected in

 She’s never  satisfied with  what she’s got.  He was  connected in  some way with that
fraud scandal a couple of years back.
Wrong with
Disappointed in
 There’s something  wrong with  the printer.
 I’m  disappointed in  you—I really thought I
List of Adjective Collocations could trust you!

with BY Experienced in
Amazed by
 He’s very  experienced in  looking after
 I was  amazed by  what she told me. animals.

Delighted by Interested in

 She was  delighted by  the news of the  He is  interested in  molecular biology.
wedding.
Polite/impolite in
Disturbed by
 He’s usually quite  polite  in my presence.
 I was deeply  disturbed  and depressed  by  the
Present in
news.
 There was a large crowd  present
Excited by
in  the  auditorium.
 Don’t get too  excited by  the sight of your
Skilled in
name in print.
 My mother is very  skilled in  dressmaking.
Fascinated by
Slow in
 I’ve always been  fascinated by  his ideas.
 His poetry was  slow in  achieving recognition.
Impressed by
Successful in
 We were all  impressed by  her  enthusiasm.
 They were  successful in  winning the contract.
Inspired by
Talented in
 The book was  inspired by  a real person.
 Some among us were  talented in  hunting.
Selfish by

 Do you think I’m being  selfish by  not letting List of Business Collocations
her go?  Annual turnover
Shocked by  Bear in mind
 Break off negotiations
 Many people were  shocked by  the sex scenes  Cease trading
in the film.  Chair a meeting
Surprised by  Close a deal
 Come to the point
 Dismiss an offer
 Draw a conclusion
 Draw your attention to
 Go bankrupt
 Go into partnership
 Launch a new product
 Lay off staff
 Market forces
 Past few weeks
 Sales figures
 Take on staff