Essential collocations with aspiration: 38 Common Combinations for English Learners

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Mastering collocations with aspiration helps you express goals and dreams naturally in English. This guide presents 38 essential word combinations across different contexts—from career plans to personal goals, education to medical terms. These collocations will improve your fluency and help you communicate like a native speaker.

Essential collocations with aspiration: 38 Common Combinations for English Learners

I. What is Aspiration?
II. Common Collocations with Aspiration
III. Exercise on collocations with Aspiration
1. 1. Exercise: Fill in the blank with the appropriate word
2. 2. Answer

I. What is Aspiration?

In English, Aspiration is pronounced as /ˌæs.pəˈreɪ.ʃən/ and functions as a noun, meaning: something that you hope to achieve; the removal of a liquid or gas from a space in the body using suction (= a sucking action); the process of breathing a substance into your lungs by accident; the noise that is made when air escapes after a plosive consonant sound. For example:

I've never had any political aspirations.
It's a story about the lives and aspirations of poor Irish immigrants.

II. Common Collocations with Aspiration

Compilation of common collocations with Aspiration

1. Career and Work Aspirations

No.	Collocations with Aspiration	Example
1	Career aspiration /kəˈrɪər ˌæspɪˈreɪʃən/	Emi's career aspiration is to become a successful entrepreneur.
2	Job aspirations /dʒɑb ˌæspɪˈreɪʃənz/	Mark's job aspirations changed after he discovered his love for teaching children.
3	Work aspirations /wɜrk ˌæspɪˈreɪʃənz/	Her work aspirations include finding a job that helps people in her community.
4	Business aspirations /ˈbɪznɪs ˌæspɪˈreɪʃənz/	Tom's business aspirations led him to open a small coffee shop downtown.
5	Dream job aspirations /drim dʒɑb ˌæspɪˈreɪʃənz/	Lisa's dream job aspirations focus on working with animals at the local zoo.
6	Professional aspirations /prəˈfɛʃənl ˌæspɪˈreɪʃənz/	As a young professional, Richard is driven by his professional aspirations to climb the corporate ladder.

2. Personal and Life Aspirations

No.	Collocations with Aspiration	Example
7	Personal aspiration /ˈpɜrsənl ˌæspɪˈreɪʃən/	Each individual has their own personal aspirations, shaped by their values, interests, and life experiences.
8	Life aspirations /laɪf ˌæspɪˈreɪʃənz/	Sarah's life aspirations include traveling to every continent before she turns 40.
9	Future aspiration /ˈfjutʃər ˌæspɪˈreɪʃən/	Jack's future aspiration is to travel the world and experience different cultures.
10	Family aspirations /ˈfæməli ˌæspɪˈreɪʃənz/	The couple's family aspirations include buying a house and having three children.
11	Simple aspirations /ˈsɪmpəl ˌæspɪˈreɪʃənz/	Sometimes simple aspirations like reading more books bring the greatest happiness.
12	Childhood aspirations /ˈtʃaɪldhʊd ˌæspɪˈreɪʃənz/	Many people abandon their childhood aspirations of becoming astronauts or firefighters.

3. Education and Learning Aspirations

No.	Collocations with Aspiration	Example
13	Educational aspirations /ˌɛdjʊˈkeɪʃənl ˌæspɪˈreɪʃənz/	Despite facing financial challenges, Anna remained determined to pursue her educational aspirations and attend college.
14	College aspirations /ˈkɑlɪdʒ ˌæspɪˈreɪʃənz/	The high school student's college aspirations motivated her to study harder and join extra activities.
15	Learning aspirations /ˈlɜrnɪŋ ˌæspɪˈreɪʃənz/	His learning aspirations include mastering Spanish and understanding computer programming.
16	Study aspirations /ˈstʌdi ˌæspɪˈreɪʃənz/	The online course helped her achieve her study aspirations of learning digital marketing.
17	School aspirations /skul ˌæspɪˈreɪʃənz/	The teacher encouraged students to share their school aspirations during the first day of class.

4. Creative and Hobby Aspirations

No.	Collocations with Aspiration	Example
18	Musical aspirations /ˈmjuzɪkəl ˌæspɪˈreɪʃənz/	From a young age, Sarah harbored musical aspirations, dreaming of becoming a renowned singer-songwriter.
19	Art aspirations /ɑrt ˌæspɪˈreɪʃənz/	The weekend art class helped him explore his art aspirations and improve his painting skills.
20	Writing aspirations /ˈraɪtɪŋ ˌæspɪˈreɪʃənz/	Her writing aspirations started with keeping a daily journal and grew into publishing short stories.
21	Sports aspirations /spɔrts ˌæspɪˈreɪʃənz/	The young athlete's sports aspirations include playing soccer for his country's national team.
22	Creative aspirations /kriˈeɪtɪv ˌæspɪˈreɪʃənz/	The art workshop encouraged participants to explore their creative aspirations through painting and drawing.

5. Social and Community Aspirations

No.	Collocations with Aspiration	Example
23	Political aspiration /pəˈlɪtɪkəl ˌæspɪˈreɪʃən/	Xavia's political aspiration is to run for office and advocate for policies that address social justice and equality issues.
24	Community aspirations /kəˈmjunɪti ˌæspɪˈreɪʃənz/	The neighborhood's community aspirations focus on building a new playground for local children.
25	Social aspirations /ˈsoʊʃəl ˌæspɪˈreɪʃənz/	His social aspirations include making new friends and becoming more active in local events.
26	Democratic aspirations /ˌdɛməˈkrætɪk ˌæspɪˈreɪʃənz/	The citizens expressed their democratic aspirations by participating in peaceful protests and advocating for political reforms.
27	National aspiration /ˈnæʃənl ˌæspɪˈreɪʃən/	The country's national aspiration is to achieve economic prosperity and social harmony for all its citizens.

6. Quality and Level of Aspirations

No.	Collocations with Aspiration	Example
28	High aspiration /haɪ ˌæspɪˈreɪʃən/	Setting high aspirations can drive individuals to push their limits and achieve extraordinary success in their endeavors.
29	Big aspirations /bɪg ˌæspɪˈreɪʃənz/	The small-town girl had big aspirations of moving to the city and starting her own company.
30	Noble aspirations /ˈnoʊbəl ˌæspɪˈreɪʃənz/	John's noble aspirations motivated him to dedicate his life to serving others and helping those in need.
31	Realistic aspirations /ˌriəˈlɪstɪk ˌæspɪˈreɪʃənz/	The career counselor helped students set realistic aspirations based on their skills and interests.
32	Common aspirations /ˈkɑmən ˌæspɪˈreɪʃənz/	Getting married and buying a home are common aspirations shared by many young adults.
33	Legitimate aspiration /lɪˈdʒɪtɪmət ˌæspɪˈreɪʃən/	Everyone has the right to pursue their legitimate aspirations, regardless of their background or circumstances.

7. Medical Terms with Aspiration

No.	Collocations with Aspiration	Example
34	Aspiration pneumonia /ˌæspɪˈreɪʃən njuˈmoʊniə/	The elderly patient developed aspiration pneumonia after accidentally breathing food into his lungs.
35	Needle aspiration /ˈnidəl ˌæspɪˈreɪʃən/	The doctor used needle aspiration to remove fluid from the patient's knee joint.
36	Pulmonary aspiration /ˈpʌlməˌnɛri ˌæspɪˈreɪʃən/	Pulmonary aspiration can occur when someone accidentally inhales food or liquid into their lungs.
37	Aspiration risk /ˌæspɪˈreɪʃən rɪsk/	Patients with swallowing problems have a higher aspiration risk during meals.
38	Aspiration prevention /ˌæspɪˈreɪʃən prɪˈvɛnʃən/	The nurse taught the family aspiration prevention techniques for feeding their elderly relative.

For more collocations with Aspiration, click the link below!

EXPLORE MORE COLLOCATIONS WITH ASPIRATION ON CAMBRIDGE!

III. Exercise on collocations with Aspiration

To better understand the meanings of collocations with Aspiration, let's complete the exercise section below!

1. Exercise: Fill in the blank with the appropriate word

future aspiration; career aspiration; democratic aspirations; educational aspirations; high aspiration

This led Jack soon to abandon his initial ___________ and to engage in newer literature and general education.
More striking, however, is the cross-national breadth of _____________!
First, the socioeconomic status of a teenager's family reflects her level of _________ and the resources available to her to attain them.
This would be a __________ as comparisons are not yet available.
Again, that is a ___________ but hard to achieve.
After graduating, she plans to pursue her __________ of becoming a doctor.
The protesters are fighting for greater __________ and more political freedoms.
The school's mission is to support the __________ of all students, regardless of their backgrounds.
The company seeks to hire candidates with __________ and the drive to succeed.
As she looks towards the future, her main __________ is to start her own business.

2. Answer

1 - career aspiration	2 - democratic aspirations	3 - educational aspirations	4 - future aspiration	5 - high aspiration
6 - career aspiration	7 - democratic aspirations	8 - educational aspirations	9 - high aspiration	10 - future aspiration

These 38 collocations with aspiration give you the tools to express goals and dreams with confidence. Practice using these combinations in conversations and writing to develop natural English expression. Start incorporating these phrases into your daily English practice today.

Chloe

Product Content Admin

Hi I'm Chloe, and I am currently serving as an Product Content Administrator at Prep Education. With over five years of experience in independent online IELTS study and exam preparation, I am confident in my ability to support learners in achieving their highest possible scores.