Introduction
Our environment is what surrounds us. We often use it to refer to the natural world. There are some verbs that we often use with ‘environment’. We call these combinations collocations. Learn some of them here with Phil.
Common collocations with ‘environment’
create an environment
provide an environment
If you create an environment for something, you ensure that conditions are suitable for something to happen. If you provide an environment, then you make it available for others.
- It’s good to create an environment where everyone feels free to say what they think.
- This youth music project provides an environment for young people to develop their creativity.
explore an environment
If you explore an environment, you try to find out what is around you.
- Puppies are often keen to explore the environment around them. They are very curious.
adapt to an environment
If you adapt to an environment, you change the way that you act because of something in that environment.
- When I moved away from home to start university, I had to adapt to a new environment very quickly – everything was different.
protect the environment
preserve the environment
safeguard the environment
Preserve, protect and safeguard the environment are all used to refer to keeping the natural environment safe from things that might harm it.
- Reducing your energy use helps to protect our environment. It reduces pollution.
- Restrictions on tourism, like stopping new hotels being built, could preserve coastal environments.
- Many rare species live in this forest, so we are doing all we can to safeguard this environment for them.
TRANSCRIPT
Note: This is not a word-for-word transcript.
Phil
Let me create an environment to help you learn verbs we can use with ‘environment’.
Sometimes, you have to create the right environment or provide the right environment for something to succeed.
The best managers provide an environment that helps their staff perform well.
As a parent, I try to create the best possible environment for my children.
When we’re in a new environment, we can explore it, or adapt to it.
Starting a new job can be tough. Often, you have to adapt to a new environment quickly.
Small children are keen to explore the environment around them.
We can use ‘environment’ to talk about nature, and when we do, we often talk about the importance of preserving the environment, protecting the environment or safeguarding the environment.
Pollution regulations safeguard the environment.
Protecting the natural environment helps maintain biodiversity. By doing this we can preserve the environments needed by different species.
We hope to provide an environment where you can practise and improve your English, and we’d really like you to explore this.