Take, Have, Get: 35 Verb Combos for Taiwan Office English (2026) | 動詞搭配詞 Take Have Get

If you’ve ever wondered why English speakers say “take a shower” instead of “do a shower,” or “have a meeting” instead of “make a meeting,” you’ve already met collocations. Collocations (搭配詞) are word pairs that sound natural together — and getting them wrong is the fastest way to sound like a beginner, even when your grammar is strong. For Taiwan professionals (台灣上班族) studying business English (商業英文) or preparing for TOEIC (多益), mastering the verbs take, have, and get is one of the highest-leverage moves you can make in 2026.

本文重點:本文整理 35 組台灣上班族最常搞混的英文搭配詞 (collocations),聚焦在三個核心動詞 take、have、get 的常見組合。每組搭配詞都附中英文範例與職場英文情境用法,適合準備多益、商業英文書信、英文會議的學習者,讓你的英文學習更接近母語人士的直覺反應,提升職場英文競爭力。

What Are Collocations? | 什麼是搭配詞?

A collocation is simply two or more words that native speakers habitually use together. “Strong coffee” sounds right; “powerful coffee” sounds odd. “Make a decision” works; “do a decision” doesn’t. There’s no logical rule — it’s frequency and habit. Native English speakers store thousands of these word pairs as single units in memory, which is why fluent speech sounds smooth even at high speed.

For Taiwan English learners, collocations are the bridge between textbook-correct grammar and the natural rhythm of business communication. A grammatically perfect email can still sound robotic if every collocation is slightly off. Worse, in a TOEIC (多益) listening question or a Zoom call with a foreign client, mis-collocated verbs cause confusion fast.

Why Take, Have, Get Trip Up Taiwan Pros | 為什麼這三個動詞最容易混淆

Mandarin uses precise verbs for most actions. Chinese typically picks a specific verb for each context — 洗澡 (wash a bath), 開會 (open/hold a meeting), 收到 (receive). English, by contrast, leans on a small handful of high-frequency verbs (take, have, get, make, do) to express dozens of actions. The same English verb maps to different Chinese verbs depending on context, which is why direct translation often fails.

If you study these three verbs as collocation bundles instead of single dictionary entries, recall speed jumps and your spoken English starts to sound far more native. This is exactly how an experienced English tutor (英文家教) coaches intermediate learners toward fluency.

Take Collocations: 12 Common Pairs | Take 搭配詞 12 組

“Take” usually means receiving, choosing, or performing a short action. Here are the most useful business-English collocations with take.

Take + Action Words | Take + 動作詞

• take a break (休息一下) — Let’s take a 10-minute break before the next slide.
• take a shower (洗澡) — I take a shower before work every morning.
• take notes (做筆記) — Please take notes during the client call.
• take a look (看一下) — Could you take a look at this report before Friday?
• take a picture (拍照) — Can you take a picture of the whiteboard?
• take action (採取行動) — We need to take action on the customer complaint today.

Take + Time and Decision | Take + 時間與決定

• take time (花時間) — This proposal will take time to draft properly.
• take your time (慢慢來) — Take your time reviewing the contract.
• take a chance (冒險) — I took a chance and applied for the Singapore role.
• take responsibility (負責) — As project lead, I take responsibility for the delay.
• take a seat (請坐) — Please take a seat, the meeting starts in two minutes.
• take advantage of (善用、利用) — Take advantage of the early-bird TOEIC discount.

Common Taiwan mistake: saying “make a shower” or “do a picture.” In English, these short physical actions almost always collocate with take.

Have Collocations: 12 Common Pairs | Have 搭配詞 12 組

“Have” usually means experiencing or possessing something over a stretch of time. It’s everywhere in business English — meetings, meals, conversations all use have.

Have + Experience Words | Have + 體驗詞

• have a meeting (開會) — We have a meeting with HR at 3 PM.
• have a conversation (對話) — Let’s have a conversation about the Q3 numbers.
• have a problem (有問題) — We have a problem with the supplier in Vietnam.
• have an idea (有想法) — I have an idea for the launch campaign.
• have a chance (有機會) — Did you have a chance to review my draft?
• have a good time (玩得開心) — I hope you have a good time at the conference.

Have + Meals and Breaks | Have + 用餐與休息

• have lunch (吃午餐) — Let’s have lunch and continue the discussion.
• have coffee (喝咖啡) — Want to have coffee at the lobby café?
• have a drink (喝一杯) — Let’s have a drink after work on Friday.
• have a rest (休息) — You should have a rest before the night flight.
• have a look (看一下) — Can you have a look at this spreadsheet?
• have a deadline (有截止日期) — We have a deadline on Monday morning.

Important note: “have a look” and “take a look” are interchangeable in most contexts. British English slightly prefers have a look; American English slightly prefers take a look. Both are correct in Taiwan business English.

Get Collocations: 11 Common Pairs | Get 搭配詞 11 組

“Get” is the trickiest of the three because it shifts meaning depending on the noun. It can mean receive, become, arrive, or understand. Taiwan learners often overuse get because it feels safe — but native speakers use it with specific noun partners.

Get + Outcome Words | Get + 結果詞

• get a job (找到工作) — She got a job at TSMC after the interview.
• get a promotion (升職) — He got a promotion to senior manager last month.
• get a discount (拿到折扣) — Can we get a discount for bulk orders?
• get the message (理解、收到訊息) — I got the message about the new policy.
• get the point (理解重點) — I get the point you’re making about cost.
• get an email (收到電子郵件) — I got an email from the Singapore office.

Get + Common Phrases | Get + 常用片語

• get ready (準備好) — Please get ready for the client presentation.
• get started (開始) — Let’s get started with the agenda.
• get in touch (聯絡) — I’ll get in touch with the vendor tomorrow.
• get to know (認識) — It was great to get to know your team.
• get back to you (回覆你) — I’ll get back to you by Wednesday.

“Get back to you” is one of the most useful collocations in business English email and phone calls. Memorize it as a single chunk — it’s the polite default close for any unresolved request.

Common Mistakes Taiwan Pros Make | 台灣上班族常犯的搭配錯誤

Below are the highest-frequency collocation errors heard in Taiwan office English. Each comes from direct Mandarin translation — the literal meaning is technically clear, but native speakers immediately notice the mismatch.

• ❌ “open a meeting” → ✅ have a meeting or hold a meeting
• ❌ “do a decision” → ✅ make a decision
• ❌ “see a look” → ✅ take a look or have a look
• ❌ “make a shower” → ✅ take a shower
• ❌ “do a break” → ✅ take a break or have a break
• ❌ “receive a job” → ✅ get a job
• ❌ “eat coffee” → ✅ have coffee or drink coffee
• ❌ “do a try” → ✅ give it a try or have a try

If you find yourself reaching for “do” or “make” with a noun and it doesn’t feel right, the answer is usually take, have, or get.

How to Learn Collocations Faster | 如何快速學會搭配詞

Don’t memorize individual words — memorize the chunk. When you learn “decision,” learn make a decision, reach a decision, postpone a decision. This is how native speakers actually store vocabulary in memory.

Three Practice Habits | 三個練習習慣

1. Read business English daily. Pick a Reuters, BBC, or Economist article (10 minutes) and underline every verb+noun pair. Your collocation database will grow naturally.
2. Use a collocation dictionary. The Oxford Collocations Dictionary shows which adjectives, verbs, and prepositions pair with each noun. It’s the single most useful tool for intermediate-to-advanced English learning (英文學習).
3. Practice with a tutor. A weekly conversation with an English tutor (英文家教) lets you hear collocation errors corrected in real time, which is far faster than self-study alone.

Practice Examples | 練習範例

Try filling in the blanks. Use take, have, or get.

1. Could you ___ a look at the contract before the call? (take / have)
2. We ___ a meeting with the new client at 10 AM tomorrow. (have)
3. I’ll ___ back to you with the final figures by Friday. (get)
4. Let’s ___ a break for 15 minutes. (take / have)
5. She ___ a promotion after the Q4 results came in. (got)
6. Please ___ your time reviewing the proposal. (take)
7. I ___ a great idea for the marketing campaign. (have)
8. We need to ___ ready for the audit next week. (get)

Quick Reference Table | 快速參考表

Save this list to your phone. Review it once a week during your commute or lunch break and your collocation instincts will sharpen quickly.

• TAKE: a break, a shower, notes, a look, a picture, action, time, a chance, responsibility, a seat, advantage of
• HAVE: a meeting, a conversation, a problem, an idea, a chance, a good time, lunch, coffee, a drink, a rest, a deadline
• GET: a job, a promotion, a discount, the message, the point, an email, ready, started, in touch, to know, back to you

Conclusion | 結論

Mastering 35 verb collocations with take, have, and get will not make you fluent on its own — but it will close the gap between textbook English and the natural rhythm of business conversation faster than almost any other vocabulary investment. Pair this list with daily reading and consistent speaking practice, and your TOEIC scores, business emails, and meeting confidence will all improve together. Print the quick reference list, slip it into your notebook, and review one collocation a day for the next month — by the end of June you’ll feel the difference in every meeting and every email you write.

Sources | 參考資料

• Oxford Learner’s Dictionaries — collocations and vocabulary reference
• Cambridge University Press — English grammar and collocations resources
• British Council — Learn English resources
• TOEIC Taiwan — official TOEIC Taiwan site