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Grammar fix

school fees

tuition

The money that students or their families must pay to attend a school, usually for tuition and sometimes for extra activities or materials.

collocationB1common

Hear it in context

Notice where the phrase sounds natural.

  • Many parents find it difficult to afford the school fees for their children each year.education
  • In my country, school fees can be quite expensive, especially for private schools, so not every family can afford to send their children there.IELTS speaking

Fix the pattern

Pattern: pay (the) school fees; (high/low) school fees; increase/decrease school fees

WrongWe pay a school fee every month.

RightWe pay the school fees every month.

Usually plural 'fees', with 'the'.

Patternpay (the) school fees; (high/low) school fees; increase/decrease school fees

Use it right

Choose the version that sounds natural in speech.

Stiff The institution levies substantial tuition charges.

Natural The school fees are really high.

'School fees' is plain; 'levies tuition charges' is formal.

Build natural chunks

Words that usually travel with it.

  • school fees + verb
    pay the feeshigh feesafford the feesannual fees

Don't confuse it

Compare with 'university tuition', which is usually used for higher education, while 'school fees' is for primary or secondary schools.

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