The Most Common Collocations and Phrases with “Car”
This post covers commonly used collocations with the word car (+examples). These include adjective + CAR, verb + CAR, and CAR + noun.
Adjective + “Car”
The adjectives commonly used in combination with CAR include luxury, economical, reliable, spacious, sports, compact/full-size, rental, and classic/vintage.
Examples:
A luxury car:
The market for luxury cars was badly hit by the recession.
An economical car:
Cars that are economical on fuel are in high demand.
A reliable car:
My car may be old, but it is reliable.
A spacious car:
Sophie’s new car is really spacious. It seats five adults comfortably.
A sports car:
Do you know who owns that red open-topped sports car?
A compact/full-size car:
Compact cars are a lot easier to park than full-size ones.
A rental car:
I usually use a rental car when I go on a holiday.
Classic and vintage cars:
Very old cars with an old-fashioned style (generally, a classic car is a vehicle manufactured before 2000, while a vintage car refers to those manufactured between 1919 and 1930).
My older brother loves American classic cars.
Verb + “Car”
The verbs that are commonly used with “car” include drive, park, get into/out of, fix/repair, crash, start, skid, and break down.
Examples:
Drive a car:
My brother doesn’t let anyone drive his luxury car.
Park a car:
I always forget where I park my car.
Get into/out of a car:
Last night, a police officer stopped me and asked me to get out of the car. Then he fined me for speeding.
Fix:
They couldn’t fix my car, and now I have to buy a new one.
Crash:
I was sleepy and nearly crashed my car last night.
Start:
My car wouldn’t start, so I had to borrow my father's.
Skid:
My car skidded and hit the tree when I suddenly braked.
Break down:
Our car broke down on the way to work, so we missed the meeting.
“Car” + Noun
The following nouns are commonly used with the word “car”: car alarm, car accident/crash/ wreck, car park, car keys, car enthusiast, car salesman, car dealership, and car insurance.
Examples:
Car alarm:
Someone tried to steal my car last night. Luckily my car alarm went off, and I woke up just in time.
Car crash:
He didn’t survive the car crash.
Car park:
The car park was full, and I had to park my car down the street.
Car keys:
I usually lose my car keys.
Car enthusiast:
David is a car enthusiast who collects and sells sports cars.
Car salesman:
A dishonest car salesman can spoil the market for his competitors.
Car dealership:
Sam works as a salesman in a car dealership.
Car insurance:
You have to get car insurance to be able to pay for the damage if you get into a car crash.
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