natural resources — materials from nature
collocationB1IELTS 5+neutralcommon
things like water, oil, forests, and minerals that come from nature and people use for living, making things, or producing energy.
Say it like a native
Textbook The country is rich in materials derived from the natural environment.
Native The country is rich in natural resources.
The paraphrase is clunky; 'natural resources' is the fixed term.
Pattern: natural resources (noun, plural); often used with verbs like 'use', 'protect', 'manage', 'depend on'
In use
- Many countries depend on natural resources like oil and gas for their economy.environment
- In my opinion, governments should invest more in protecting natural resources, such as forests and clean water, to ensure a better future for everyone.IELTS speaking
Common mistake
✗ The country has many natural resource.
✓ The country has many natural resources.
Usually plural — 'resources'.
Common collocations
natural resources— natural resources, rich in, exploit, scarce
Don't confuse it
Different from 'artificial resources', which are made by people.