Business Idioms 1

"Give me a ballpark figure regarding the cost of this project".

"That kind of proposal probably won't fly with the boss. He's tight with funds and won't go over budget one penny".

"If we want to corner the market, we'll have to drum up a better advertising plan".

Unless you have a good understanding of business idioms in English, you will likely be confused when someone you work with makes these statements. Idioms like "ballpark figure" and "corner the market" are commonly used in everyday business English. Unfortunately, in the fast-paced, competitive world of corporate America, asking someone to explain what an idiom means every five minutes won't help you achieve your career goals.

Some English business idioms have been around for a long time. Others enter the language on a daily basis due to the advancements in digital technology. For example, "burning the midnight oil" is an old idiom still heard today because it remains useful. What better way for a boss to nicely tell an employee "don't go to sleep until you have finished the project" by implying they should "burn the midnight oil"?

Newer business idioms in English include "scouring the Internet" and "putting in facetime". When you take our six-module course to help build your knowledge of business idioms, you will learn that:

• To "scour" in English means to "scrape or rub something clean". So, if you hear a co-worker say they are going to "scour the Internet" for stock market values of a certain company, that indicates they plan to spend a lot of time searching for information on many websites.
• To "put in facetime" means you plan to remain in your office working late into the evening instead of going home to work remotely. However, the idiomatic part of saying you are "putting in facetime" implies you are only staying late to impress the boss.

Understanding and using business idioms in English shows you are taking your career seriously. It also shows that you have taken the time to learn to communicate as effectively as possible with coworkers, supervisors and people associated with your company. In addition, when you can smartly insert business idioms into your daily conversations, you'll feel more confident and empowered to talk about your ideas and aspirations with coworkers and bosses.

Our comprehensive course provides ESL learners with the information they need to improve their vocabulary with business idioms heard in a variety of corporate scenarios. Each module introduces a new set of business idioms with detailed explanations behind their meanings. Modules also include scenario-based learning situations for contextual experience and practice exercises to ensure you understand the concept behind each idiom. Our courses on business idioms in English cover hundreds of finance, marketing, management, production and operations idioms.

When you enroll in our English idioms course, expect the course to take about six to eight weeks to complete if you commit at least three hours per week to the course. Since this is a self-paced, online learning set of modules, you can commit as many hours or as few hours per week to accommodate your schedule.

• Adult learners of English as a second language.
• Professionals who need to use English at work.
• Anyone with an intermediate level of English who wants to expand their knowledge of English expressions and improve their listening and reading skills.

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