Talking about the weather: exploring adjective use with Sketch Engine for Language Learning

This chapter is a gentle introduction to corpora and collocations, suitable for English language students at CEFR level B1 and above. It can easily be used by teachers who are unfamiliar with corpora. Students begin by predicting the adjective collocates of the word weather, which they then compare with the lists produced by the word sketch function in the user-friendly Sketch Engine for Language Learning (SKELL). By examining the examples, students can deduce the meaning of unfamiliar words and reach subtler insights into the use of these words (e.g. inclement weather is often used when events have to be canceled). Further practice activities with SKELL are included in the chapter.