Online OXFORD Collocation Dictionary

examination noun

¹ exam

ADJ. difficult, stiff The stiff entrance examination removes 60 per cent of prospective students. | easy | important | entrance, matriculation, selection | end of term/year, final He has just completed his final examinations at London University. | professional, school | formal | competitive | external, public One of the teacher's principal duties is to prepare students for external examinations. | A level, GCSE, etc. | mock | multiple choice, oral, practical, written, viva voce

VERB + EXAMINATION prepare for, revise for, study for | enter for Students may enter for both examinations. | do, sit, take She will take her professional examinations later this year. | resit, retake | do well in, pass | do badly in, fail | set The examinations are set by individual teachers. | administer, invigilate | mark

EXAMINATION + NOUN paper, question | syllabus | candidate | grades, marks, results | certificate | hall, room | fee | technique | success

PREP. ~ in He failed his examination in history. | ~ on an examination on human anatomy

² looking at sth carefully

ADJ. careful, close, detailed, full, lengthy, rigorous, thorough Each of the proposals deserves careful examination. | brief, cursory, superficial | initial, preliminary | critical The school curriculum has undergone critical examination in recent years. | clinical, forensic, medical, physical, post-mortem, psychiatric, scientific

VERB + EXAMINATION carry out, conduct, do, make, perform He carried out a post-mortem examination. We will make a more thorough examination of the area later. | come under, have, be subject/subjected to, undergo I was advised to have a full eyesight examination. | stand up to His ideas about social change do not stand up to close examination.

EXAMINATION + VERB reveal sth, show sth A medical examination showed no signs of hypertension.

EXAMINATION + NOUN couch She lay on the examination couch and waited for the doctor to return.

PREP. on ~ On closer examination the wood was found to be rotten. | under ~ Several items of clothing are still under examination. | ~ by The school's controversial methods have come under examination by the local authority.