Effect Collocation for IELTS - Advanced Vocabulary for Band 8+

Kasturika Samanta

7 min read

Updated On Oct 30, 2025

Explore Effect Collocations for IELTS and learn to express causes, impacts, and results using such advanced vocabulary. Check out the types of word pairings while identifying the common mistakes to avoid and level up your preparation to score a band 8+.

Effect Collocation for IELTS - Advanced Vocabulary for Band 8+

Common Mistakes to Avoid Using Effect Collocation for IELTS
Types of Effect Collocation for IELTS
Exercise on Effect Collocation for IELTS

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One of the factors that can help you get a higher band score of 8+ is the ability to convey information with advanced vocabulary such as Effect Collocation for IELTS. As you prepare for the IELTS Exam, you can incorporate such word pairings when exploring the causes, results, and consequences. If you are focusing on environmental changes, social issues, education, or technology, using collocations will still make your answer sound coherent and fluent with clarity.

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Common Mistakes to Avoid Using Effect Collocation for IELTS

Before you start using Effect Collocations for IELTS, it is necessary to get familiar with the common mistakes which you might encounter using incorporating these IELTS Vocabulary. Such errors would reduce the clarity, coherence and lexical accuracy of your answers. If you are using them incorrectly or in the wrong context, it might end up making your answers sound unnatural. Therefore, it is essential to recognize these mistakes and also learn how to avoid them for getting a band 8+.

Topic	Mistake	Tip
Mixing Up “Affect” and “Effect”	Common Error: Pollution can effect people’s health. Correction: Pollution can affect people’s health.	Remember that “affect” is a verb which means to influence while “effect” is a noun which refers to the result or outcome.
Overuse of "Big Effect" or "Good Effect"	Common Error: The impact of social media on teenagers is huge. Correction: The impact of social media on teenagers is considerable or even enormous.	In place of ordinary adjectives like huge or good, use academic collocations like considerable effect, strong effect, or lasting effect.
Using Wrong Prepositions	Common Error: This law has an effect in the economy. Correction: This law has an effect on the economy.	Portray the effect of the law by saying "effect on".
Redundant Expressions	Common Error: Students had a positive beneficial effect. Correction: Students had a beneficial effect.	Do not use two adjectives that have similar meanings. Pick one exact collocation.
Using “Effect” Without Context	Common Error: The effect was bad. Correction: There was a negative effect on employment rates.	Always explain what the effect was and in what context. This will not only clear up your answer but also add academic depth.
Not using variety	Common Error: Using “have an effect” repeatedly in the same essay. Correction: Use other expressions such as “exert an influence,” “lead to,” “bring about,” or “result in” to mix it up.	This shows lexical flexibility which is a key to Band 8+.

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Types of Effect Collocation for IELTS

Mastering the various types of Effect Collocations for IELTS is imperative for presenting your thoughts in an accurate manner. In this way, you could sound more like a native as you learn how to combine the term "effect" with verbs, adjectives, and prepositions. These would help you to distinguish between causes and effects, pros and cons, and temporary or permanent influences. This will enhance your knowledge of using the correct rules in IELTS Grammar. Below are some of the Effect Collocations that can be included in your IELTS answers along with their definitions and examples.

Collocation	Meaning	Example
have an effect on	to influence or impact something	Agriculture and food production have an effect on climate change.
bring about an effect	cause or produce a result	The new policy had brought about an effect on the employment figures.
create an effect	make a particular impact	The lighting created an effect when the room felt warm and cozy.
significant effect	noticeable or important impact	Regular exercise on physical and mental health has a significant effect.
adverse effect	negative impact	Air pollution has an adverse effect on people’s health as many individuals are developing breathing problems.
lasting effect	an effect that continues for a long time	Early education has a lasting effect on a child's development.
positive effect	beneficial or helpful result	The recent government funding has resulted in a positive effect on the growth of scientific research.
effect on	the influence something has	The new curriculum has an effect on the students’ motivation.
in effect	in operation	The policy will be in effect starting next month.
with effect from	starting from a particular date	The new rules have to be followed with effect from January, 2026.

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Exercise on Effect Collocation for IELTS

Now, it is time to turn knowledge into action. The exercises below are your guide to spotting appropriate contexts, facilitating sentence flow and good expression for a Band 8+ answer. Let’s check how well you have comprehended the concept of using this collocation but remember to not make any mistakes while choosing the right answer.

EXERCISE 1. Which of the adjectives in bold are positive and which are negative?

1 There is abundant evidence that smoking has a harmful effect on /our health.

2 Many chemicals have a damaging effect on the environment.

3 People today are aware of the beneficial effects of exercise. That’s why so many join leisure clubs.

4 Watching too much television is having an adverse effect on John’s progress at school.

5 The girl was kept locked up in a darkened room, but she seems to have suffered no ill effects.

6 The Victorians swore by the therapeutic effects of sea-bathing.

7 The bad behaviour of our neighbour’s children is having a detrimental effect on our own children.

EXERCISE 2. Use the following adjectives in these sentences:

calming	combined	deadening	noticeable
overall	opposite	desired	profound

1 His mother put her arm around her to help her relax, but it had exactly the __________ effect. She just froze! I don’t think they’ll ever get on.

2 I didn’t realise it at the time, but my father’s death had a __________ effect on me. It’s taken me a long time to get over it.

3 The music they play in planes is designed to have a __________effect on the passengers.

4 Alcohol has a __________ effect on the senses. That’s why it’s dangerous to drink and drive.

5 The doctor gave me some drugs to relieve the pain, but they had no __________ effect. Two hours later I felt exactly the same.

6 There have been a number of criticisms of the government in the press in recent weeks. However, the __________ effect of these has not damaged the Prime Minister’s popularity.

7 Most of the victims of the fire died from the __________ effects of smoke and heat.

8 Unfortunately, my apology to Jackie has not had the __________ effect. She still ignores me! Some people just don’t know how to forgive!

EXERCISE 3. Match the two halves to make complete sentences:

1 The outbreak of war in the Middle East had a dramatic effect

2 These tablets will help with the pain, but unfortunately they don’t have a long-lasting effect

3 The recent advertising campaign has had a marked effect on sales. In fact,

4 In tonight’s programme we’ll be looking at the long-term effects

5 I’m afraid that the new drug has had no significant effect

a of unemployment.

b we’ll have to take on new staff to keep up with the increased demand.

c on stopping the spread of the disease.

d you’ll need to take two every couple of hours.

e on petrol prices. They almost doubled overnight.

Notes

1. In 2-3 you can also say ‘soothing effect’.

2. Two common verbs are ‘take’ and ‘come into’:

The new regulations take effect at midnight tonight.
We don’t expect the new law on inheritance to come into effect till late in the autumn.

3. If something has a ‘knock-on effect’, it causes something else to happen:

Today’s strike will have a knock-on effect on all flights for the next few days.

4. Drugs can have unpleasant ‘side-effects’:

The possible side effects of the drug include headaches and nausea.

5. ‘After-effects’ can come some time after you have taken medicine.

6. Global warming and ‘the greenhouse effect’ are two major issues of today.

7. ‘Special effects’ are the techniques used by film-makers to make their films look spectacular:

The special effects in the three Lord of the Rings films were amazing!
I’d go to see it just for the special effects!

Answers for the Exercise on Effect Collocation for IELTS

It is time to check your answers thoroughly. By comparing the correct responses with your own, you can better comprehend the usage of each collocation in a sentence. This process of reflection will point out your weaknesses which will help you in your vocabulary refinement in both writing and speaking sections. With constant practice, you will get your desired IELTS Band Score of 8+.

EXERCISE 1.

Negative
Negative
Positive
Negative
Positive
Positive
Negative

EXERCISE 2.

1. opposite	2. profound	3. calming	4. deadening
5. noticeable	6. overall	7. combined	8. desired

EXERCISE 3.

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Remember to start creating sentences using such advanced vocabulary while answering questions from mock tests. By applying these collocations, your vocabulary will be varied and well-controlled, especially in both analytical and opinion-based tasks. Therefore, keep practicing with these expressions and fit them seamlessly into your answers to increase your fluency to achieve a band 8+.