Lesson 3: Idiomatic Expressions and Collocations

🟦 Introduction

Have you ever heard someone say, “She kicked the bucket” or “He let the cat out of the bag”? These are idiomatic expressions — phrases whose meanings cannot be understood by simply looking at the individual words. You also hear people say “make a decision” or “take a shower” — these are collocations, or words that naturally go together in English.

In this lesson, you’ll learn how to:

• Recognize and interpret idioms and collocations

• Avoid taking idioms literally

• Use common collocations confidently

• Practice WASSCE-style questions on both idioms and collocations

🟩 Key Concepts and Explanations

1. What is an Idiom?

An idiom is a fixed expression where the overall meaning is different from the meanings of the individual words.

Example:

• “Break the ice” = to start a friendly conversation

• “Spill the beans” = to reveal a secret

You don’t take idioms literally. If someone says “raining cats and dogs,” they mean it’s raining heavily — not that animals are falling from the sky!

2. Common Idioms in English

Idioms often appear in comprehension passages or multiple-choice questions in WASSCE.

3. What is a Collocation?

A collocation is a natural combination of words that English speakers often use together. It’s not a fixed idiom, but if you break the collocation, the sentence may sound awkward or wrong.

Examples of common collocations:

• make a mistake (NOT “do a mistake”)

• take a break

• heavy rain (NOT “strong rain”)

• fast food (NOT “quick food”)

Knowing these combinations improves fluency and helps with correct sentence construction.

4. Why WAEC Tests These

WAEC wants to test if you:

• Understand figurative language (idioms)

• Recognize natural word pairings (collocations)

• Can tell when a sentence sounds odd or unnatural

🟨 Practice Exercises

✏️ Exercise 1: Idiomatic Meanings

Choose the meaning that best matches each idiom.

1. To hit the nail on the head
   A. To hurt someone
   B. To make a mistake
   C. To say the right thing
   D. To repair something

2. He let the cat out of the bag.
   A. He freed an animal
   B. He ran away
   C. He revealed a secret
   D. He gave someone a gift

3. They were under the weather yesterday.
   A. They were outside
   B. They were angry
   C. They were sad
   D. They were unwell

4. It was a blessing in disguise.
   A. A lucky accident
   B. A hidden enemy
   C. A beautiful dress
   D. A punishment

✏️ Exercise 2: Collocation Gaps

Choose the correct word to complete each collocation.

5. I want to ______ a complaint.
   A. do
   B. make
   C. give
   D. write

6. Kwesi likes to ______ a nap after school.
   A. make
   B. have
   C. take
   D. do

7. The team made a ______ effort to win.
   A. strong
   B. hard
   C. heavy
   D. deep

8. There was a ______ rain last night.
   A. strong
   B. fast
   C. heavy
   D. deep

✏️ Exercise 3: Spot the Error

Each sentence contains a misused idiom or collocation. Identify the incorrect part.

9. I did a mistake on my test.

10. She takes her bath in the morning every day.

11. He spilled the beans during the cooking class.

12. The boy was under the cloud and stayed at home.

✅ Answers and Explanations

Exercise 1: Idiomatic Meanings

1. C – “Hit the nail on the head” means to be exactly right.

2. C – “Let the cat out of the bag” means to reveal a secret.

3. D – “Under the weather” means feeling sick.

4. A – A “blessing in disguise” is something good that seemed bad at first.

Exercise 2: Collocation Gaps
5. B. make – Correct collocation: make a complaint
6. C. take – Correct: take a nap
7. B. hard – Correct: make a hard effort (or “put in a lot of effort”)
8. C. heavy – Correct: heavy rain

Exercise 3: Spot the Error
9. ❌ did a mistake → ✔ made a mistake
10. ✔ takes her bath – Correct collocation in West African English
11. ✔ spilled the beans – Correct if the class had nothing to do with secrets
✳️ But context matters; in cooking class, it may cause confusion.
12. ❌ under the cloud → ✔ under the weather (meaning sick)

🔁 Recap

In this lesson, you learned:

• Idioms don’t mean what they literally say

• Collocations are natural word pairings

• WAEC tests both in context and meaning

🪞Reflection Prompt

Write down 2 idioms you’ve heard before. Try to explain their meanings and use each one in your own sentence. Then write 2 common collocations you’ve seen in school or daily life.