Learn English Through Collocations: "High-Powered Job"
Do you want to describe an important and influential role but aren't sure of the right words? This post focuses on the English collocation "high-powered job". Learning common phrases like this is essential for vocabulary building and will help you sound more natural. We'll explore its meaning, see real examples, and avoid common mistakes. By the end, you'll be able to use this phrase confidently to improve your fluency and describe ambitious career paths.
Table of Contents
- What Does "High-Powered Job" Mean?
- Real-Life Examples Using 'High-Powered Job'
- Common Mistakes
- Why Learn Collocations?
- Conclusion
What Does "High-Powered Job" Mean?
This phrase is an Adjective + Noun collocation.
- High-powered (adjective): According to the Cambridge Dictionary, this means "(of people) very important or successful, or (of things) very powerful."
- Job (noun): This refers to the regular work that a person does to earn money.
The combined meaning of a "high-powered job" describes a professional position that carries significant importance, influence, and responsibility. It suggests a role where a person makes critical decisions that can affect a company, industry, or even the public, often associated with successful careers in fields like business, law, or politics.
More: Temporary Job Collocation: Learn English Vocabulary & Usage
Real-Life Examples Using 'High-Powered Job'
Seeing how a phrase is used in context is one of the best ways to build your vocabulary. Here are some real-life examples of the collocation "high-powered job".
Discussing Career Ambitions
- My cousin has always dreamed of landing a high-powered job in international finance.
Describing a Character in a Movie
- The main character left her high-powered job as a corporate lawyer to open a small bakery.
Reading a News Article
- The report detailed the immense pressure and long hours that come with having a high-powered job in the tech industry.
Talking About Personal Choices
- He turned down the high-powered job because it required too much travel and he wanted to spend more time with his family.
More: Mastering 'Permanent Job': English Collocations Explained
Common Mistakes
Avoiding common errors is key to sounding more natural. Here are a couple of mistakes learners make with this phrase.
Using an Unnatural Synonym
Some learners might translate directly from their native language and say "strong job" or "big job." While these words convey power, they don't form a natural word pair with "job" in this context. "High-powered" is the correct adjective to describe an influential role.
- โ Incorrect: He has a very strong job at the company.
- โ Correct: He has a very high-powered job at the company.
Confusing with "High-Paying Job"
Although many high-powered jobs are also high-paying, the terms focus on different aspects. "High-powered" emphasizes influence and responsibility, while "high-paying" strictly refers to the salary. A job can pay well without being influential.
- โ Incorrect: Her main goal is a high-powered job because she just wants to earn a lot of money.
- โ Correct: Her main goal is a high-paying job because she just wants to earn a lot of money.
Why Learn Collocations?
Learning common word combinations is a smart way to accelerate your English progress. Here's why:
Boost Fluency: Using word pairs like "high-powered job" allows you to speak more smoothly without pausing to think of individual words. It's a key step to improving fluency.
Sound More Natural: Native speakers use collocations constantly. Integrating them into your vocabulary helps you move away from sounding like a textbook and more like a fluent speaker.
Improve Comprehension: When you recognize these word pairs, you can process information faster, making it easier to understand conversations, movies, and articles.
Expand Vocabulary Effectively: Instead of just learning one word, you learn a chunk of language. This method of vocabulary building is more efficient and practical for communication.
Conclusion
Incorporating phrases like the one we've discussed today is a significant step toward advancing your English skills. Moving beyond single words and embracing these natural word pairs will make your speech sound more authentic and confident. Continue practicing these common phrases in your daily conversations, and you will see a remarkable improvement in how effectively and naturally you communicate. Keep up the great work on your language-learning journey!
