kollokatsioon
Kollokatsioon refers to the tendency for certain words to co-occur more frequently than would be expected by chance. It is a concept central to lexicography and linguistic analysis, particularly in understanding natural language use. These are not simply random pairings but rather habitual and predictable combinations of words that form a recognizable unit. For example, "make a decision" is a common kollokatsioon, while "create a decision" sounds unnatural to native speakers. Similarly, "heavy rain" is a standard kollokatsioon, whereas "strong rain" is less common.
The study of kollokatsioone helps linguists and language learners to grasp the nuances of how words function