/ ˈkɒləkeɪt; NAmE ˈkɑːl-/ verb
[ v ] ( linguistics ) collocate (with sth) ( of words ) to be often used together in a language :
'Bitter' collocates with 'tears' but 'sour' does not.
'Bitter' and 'tears' collocate.
► col·lo·cate / ˈkɒləkət; NAmE ˈkɑː-/ noun :
'Bitter' and 'tears' are collocates.
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WORD ORIGIN
early 16th cent. meaning to place things side by side in a particular relation: from Latin collocat- placed together, from the verb collocare , from col- together + locare to place. The current sense dates from the 1950s.