Friendship ENGLISH COLLOCATIONS IN USE (ADVANCED)

 

ENGLISH COLLOCATIONS IN USE (ADVANCED)

UNIT 40

Friendship

A	Friendship over a lifetime Read this introduction to an article about friendship from a popular science magazine. Do you have a lot of close friends? Are they lifelong friends? Childhood friends? Have you ever met someone and instantly felt that you’ve made a friend for life? People with a large circle of friends may well have discovered the secret of a long and happy life, according to recent scientific research which suggests that having good friends may actually help us live longer. For many, the most important friendship is a long-term relationship1 with a partner or a spouse. However, the research shows that platonic relationships2 are equally valuable. Whether your social network is made up of firm friends or casual acquaintances, socialising could impact positively on your life expectancy. 1 usually referring to a romantic relationship 2 relationships which are not romantic or sexual
B	Making, keeping and losing friends. Read these messages about friendship. ••• <  > My closest friend and I have been on bad terms ever since I sent her a text about her boyfriend, which she took the wrong way. Now I don’t know how to to heal the rift1. Any advice? Katie 17:02 Maybe you should have a heart-to-heart chat with her to explain what you meant? If you leave it, the relationship will eventually break down. Ryan 17:02 I think you should put some distance between you for a while. Let her cool off. Amy 17:03 An old friend of mine came under attack at work so I sprang to his defence2 but he didn’t thank me – instead, he told me not to interfere! Scott 17:05 It sounds as if he didn’t deserve your moral support3. He should apologise to you if he wants to stay on friendly terms. Chloe 17:05 I find it hard to forge4 new relationships after one of my closest friends turned all my other friends against me. Lucy 17:06 It takes time to win someone’s trust and when they abuse that trust it hurts. Artur 17:06 1 end a serious disagreement between friends 2 acted very quickly to defend him 3 showing that you approve of someone and what they are doing 4 form or create
	Common mistakes Remember, the collocation is make friends, NOT get friends or find friends. At first it was difficult to make friends at my new school, but then I met Richard.

EXERCISES

40.1	Choose the correct collocation. 1 I was contacted by a childish / childhood / childlike friend I hadn’t seen for years. 2 Louisa has a very moral / close / casual relationship with Kelly. They’ve been friends for over 20 years. 3 Foraging / Forcing / Forging good relationships helps us live longer. 4 Mason was a long-life / lifelong / lifelike friend of my father’s. 5 She has quite a wide circle / circulation / cycle of friends. 6 It’s hard to form life-term / long-time / long-term relationships when you’re in a job that involves a lot of travelling.
40.2	Complete each sentence using an adjective from the box. bad casual close complete cordial firm friendly moral social stable 1 I don’t know her well – we’re just ____________ acquaintances. 2 We have been on ____________ terms ever since Jack refused to return the money I lent him. 3 For many people the Internet plays an important role in developing new ____________ networks. 4 Jack Whitley was a ____________ confidant of the Prime Minister in the 1980s. 5 Their relationship hasn’t been very ____________. They’ve broken up and got back together again several times. 6 She told her entire life story to a ____________ stranger on a train. 7 Bethan and I have been ____________ friends for many years. 8 Thanks for all the ____________ support you gave me when I needed it. 9 Leslie and I have remained on ____________ terms despite our professional disagreements.
40.3	Rewrite each sentence using a synonym of the underlined words to create collocations from the opposite page. 1 From the moment they met they knew they would be friends for ever. 2 She always leapt to Angela’s defence if anyone criticised her. 3 He very quickly gained his employer’s trust and was given a very important job. 4 She when I had problems at work. 5 I arranged a meeting to try to resolve the rift between Hilary and Jake. 6 I’m sorry that you interpreted what I said the wrong way. 7 Their relationship collapsed when she discovered he was seeing someone else. 8 We’ve been very good friends ever since our first day at primary school.
40.4	Correct the collocation errors in these sentences. 1 We should have a head-to-foot chat to resolve our differences. 2 She got under attack from some colleagues at work who didn’t like her. 3 If you disuse someone’s trust you deserve to lose their friendship. 4 We tried hard to have the relationship work but failed. 5 I think you need to make some distance between yourself and Eduardo.
	Over to you Horoscopes are a good source of vocabulary on relationships. Read English ones now and then in a newspaper or online at, say, www.horoscopes.co.uk, and make notes of any useful collocations you find.

 

ANSWER KEY

 

40.1 1 childhood 2 close 3 Forging 4 lifelong 5 circle 6 long-term   40.2 1 casual 2 bad 3 social 4 close 5 stable 6 complete 7 firm/close 8 moral 9 friendly   40.3 1 life                             5 heal 2 sprang                      6 took 3 won                          7 broke down 4 provided me with    8 close/firm   40.4 1 We should have a heart-to-heart chat to resolve our differences. 2 She came under attack from some colleagues at work who didn’t like her. 3 If you abuse someone’s trust you deserve to lose their friendship. 4 We tried hard to make the relationship work but failed. 5 I think you need to put some distance between yourself and Eduardo.