Word Pairs, Collocations, and the Present Perfect
How English locks certain words together — and a tense that links past to now
English loves to lock certain words together in a fixed order. Bread and butter — never butter and bread. These are fixed expressions and collocations. The article is full of them. Then we'll meet the present perfect tense — the one that ties a past action to the present moment.
Word pairs joined by "and"
The article uses many pairs: exotic and stylish, villages and towns, thread and wool, silk and brass, ornate and encrusted, within and outside. You can sort them by what they describe — appearance (exotic and stylish, ornate and encrusted), place (villages and towns, within and outside), material (thread and wool, silk and brass).
Some 'X and Y' pairs are fixed expressions with a meaning beyond the words — and the order can never be swapped. The shorter word usually comes first.
Fixed 'X and Y' expressions from the exercise. Each has a meaning you can't guess from the words alone.
Q1.'Wear and tear' means:
Collocations — words that like to keep company
A collocation is a pair of words that naturally go together, even when another word would seem correct. The article uses sustainable livelihood, appreciating the culture. You take an exam (not give it, in standard usage); you take a seat; a vehicle runs into another. Learning collocations is what makes your English sound natural rather than translated.
Choose the natural collocation.
The interviewer asked the candidate to ____ a seat.
My scooter ____ a car.
I must ____ responsibility for my success.
The present perfect tense — past action, present relevance
Look at these from the article: pankhas have become craft items; women workers have worked tirelessly; tribes have adopted this handicraft; the craft has transformed into a business.
These verbs describe the past — but with relevance to NOW. That is the present perfect tense: has/have + past participle. Use it for an action completed at an unspecified past time whose effect still matters today ('puppetry has evolved' — and the result, today's puppetry, is what we see).
Put the verb into the present perfect (has/have + past participle).
Puppeteers ____ (create) intricate characters with their artistry.
Over the years, puppetry ____ (evolve), using modern technology.
Why use the present perfect for 'the craft has transformed into a business'?
Q1.A 'fixed expression' like bread and butter:
English loves to lock certain words together in a fixed order. Bread and butter — never butter and bread. These are fixed expressions and collocations. The article is full of them. Then we'll meet the present perfect tense — the one that ties a past action to the present moment.
Word pairs joined by "and"
The article uses many pairs: exotic and stylish, villages and towns, thread and wool, silk and brass, ornate and encrusted, within and outside. You can sort them by what they describe — appearance (exotic and stylish, ornate and encrusted), place (villages and towns, within and outside), material (thread and wool, silk and brass).
Some 'X and Y' pairs are fixed expressions with a meaning beyond the words — and the order can never be swapped. The shorter word usually comes first.
Fixed 'X and Y' expressions from the exercise. Each has a meaning you can't guess from the words alone.
Q1.'Wear and tear' means:
Collocations — words that like to keep company
A collocation is a pair of words that naturally go together, even when another word would seem correct. The article uses sustainable livelihood, appreciating the culture. You take an exam (not give it, in standard usage); you take a seat; a vehicle runs into another. Learning collocations is what makes your English sound natural rather than translated.
Choose the natural collocation.
The interviewer asked the candidate to ____ a seat.
My scooter ____ a car.
I must ____ responsibility for my success.
The present perfect tense — past action, present relevance
Look at these from the article: pankhas have become craft items; women workers have worked tirelessly; tribes have adopted this handicraft; the craft has transformed into a business.
These verbs describe the past — but with relevance to NOW. That is the present perfect tense: has/have + past participle. Use it for an action completed at an unspecified past time whose effect still matters today ('puppetry has evolved' — and the result, today's puppetry, is what we see).
Put the verb into the present perfect (has/have + past participle).
Puppeteers ____ (create) intricate characters with their artistry.
Over the years, puppetry ____ (evolve), using modern technology.
Why use the present perfect for 'the craft has transformed into a business'?
Q1.A 'fixed expression' like bread and butter: