considerable, long, wide | good, invaluable, relevant, unrivalled, valuable
She didn''t get paid much but it was all good experience. | Both candidates for the presidency were short of relevant experience. | Rolls Royce''s unrivalled experience in high technology manufacturing

previous
Do you have any previous experience of this type of work?

direct, first-hand, hands-on, practical
the importance of hands-on experience as well as academic training

professional, work

have | lack | gain, get | broaden
She wanted to broaden her experience in international affairs.

~ of
She has considerable professional experience of translation.

a lack of experience, a wealth of experience
The veteran goalkeeper will bring a wealth of experience to the team.

past
We''re in for a difficult couple of weeks, if past experience is anything to go by.

direct, first-hand, hands-on, personal | subjective
Experience is subjective and very hard to measure.

vicarious
I love reading: I have an insatiable appetite for vicarious experience.

common, shared
his peers, with whom he shares the common experience of being black in a white society

common
It is a matter of common experience that disorder will increase if things are left to themselves.

everyday
Choose illustrative examples from the children''s everyday experience.

human
There are few areas of human experience that have not been written about.

sensory

have | share | draw on, learn by/from/through
In her book, she draws on her first-hand experience of mental illness. | We all learn by experience.

be based on
The book is based on personal experience.

suggest sth, teach (sb) sth
Experience has taught me that life can be very unfair.

by/from ~
We know from experience that hot objects are painful to touch.

in sb''s ~
In my experience, very few people really understand the problem.

~ of
He has direct experience of poverty.

enjoyable, exhilarating, good, interesting, liberating, pleasant, rewarding, unforgettable, valuable | bad, harrowing, painful, traumatic, unnerving, unsettling
I had a bad experience with fireworks once.

hair-raising, nerve-racking
a hair-raising experience of white-water rafting

humbling, salutary, sobering | personal, subjective | common, shared
The use of drama can motivate students by allowing them to share a common experience.

common
It is a common experience to feel that an author writes well, without being able to say why.

real-life | past | childhood, early, formative
Early experiences shape the way we face up to and deal with crises in later life.

educational, learning | mystical, religious, visionary | psychic | sexual | near-death

enjoy, go through, have, undergo
She has been through a very traumatic experience. | I think you will enjoy the experience of taking part in the show.

come through, get over
It could take him years to get over this experience.

describe, recount, talk about | share, swap
Does anyone have any experiences - good or bad - that they would like to share with the group?

relive
Reliving past experiences can release powerful feelings that have been pent up too long.

be based on
The novel is based on his experiences in the war.

quite an experience
It was quite an experience being involved in making a television programme.

actually | directly, first-hand
He hadn''t directly experienced the fighting in the city. | people who have actually experienced these problems first-hand

subjectively