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7/24/2019 Idioms in Business English
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/idioms-in-business-english 1/22
7/24/2019 Idioms in Business English
http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/idioms-in-business-english 2/22
that stock but I
didn$t! Then it
went up to ten
times its original
value! I really
missed the boaton that one!
+and on your
feet
to be successful or lucky especially
after a period of not having success or
luck
"he,s really landed
on her feet with
this new -ob Take the bull by
the horns
to take control of a dicult situation If you don,t take
the bull by the
horns and ask
your boss for a
raise you,ll never
get one!
Think out of thebox
to think freely +et,s think outsidethe box for a
minute and try to
nd a better
solution!Water under the
bridge
problems that someone has had in the
past that they no longer worry about
.es we did have
our disagreements
but that,s water
under the bridge
now!/aise the bar To raise the standards of 0uality that are
expected of or re0uired for something!
1ust as I was
gettingaccustomed to my
-ob the manager
raised the bar and
I had to perform
even better!2old your
horses
used to tell someone to stop and
consider carefully their decision or
opinion about something
1ust hold your
horses (ill3 +et,s
think about this
for a moment! 1ump the gun to do something before it should be done 2e shouted at me
before I had time
to explain but
later he
apologised for
-umping the gun!4rop the ball to fail to keep working to reach a goal 5ublic schools
have pretty much
dropped the ball
on arts education!"tay on your
toes
alert and aware .ou have to be on
your toes if you
want to be in this
business! I have to
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stay on my toes to
keep from getting
red!6eep the ball
rolling
to cause something that is in progress to continue. Tom started the
pro-ect and we
kept the ballrolling! Whowill
keep the ball
rolling now that
she is gone7"tay ahead of
the curve
head of the times; ahead of schedule We need to stay
ahead of the curve
if we are to stay in
business!5lay it by ear o act according to the circumstances; improvise I don,t have a set
schedule so we,ll
have to play it byear!
Iron out a few
bugs
resolve computer malfunctions! We still need to
iron out a few
bugs before we
get the system up
and runningGet to know the
ropes
(e informed about the details of a
situation or task!
4on,t worry about
"ara,s taking over
that reporter,s -ob8
she already knows
the ropes!6eep me in the
loop
To keep someone informed about and9or
involved in something such as a plan or
pro-ect especially that which involves or
pertains to a specic group!
We,ve hired a new
intern to help you
with data entry so
be sure to keep
her in the loop
about the pro-ect!:runch the
numbers
5erform numerous calculations or
process a large amount of numerical
data!
5reparing 1ohn,s
presentation to
the ;ederal
/eserve (oard
re0uired many
hours of crunching
numbers !4eliver the
goods
to do what someone hopes you will do "he hired a
songwriter who
has written
several hit tunes
and he delivered
the goods for her!5ull the plug to stop something from continuing 1ane pulled the
plug on the whole
pro-ect as it was
bound to fail!
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24/7 "24/7" means 24 hours a day, seven days a week. he convenience store
on the corner is open
24/7.
a tough break !hen something unfortunate happens, it can be
called a "tough break."
t was a tough break for
us when #aroline $uit.
%he was one of our top
performers.
ahead of the curve o be "ahead of the curve" means to be more
advanced than the competition.
!e&re investing a lot of
money in research and
development so we
can stay ahead of the
curve.
ahead of the pack o be "ahead of the pack" means to be better or
more successful than the competition.
f we want to stay
ahead of the pack,
we&re going to have to
work really hard and
continue to innovate.
'%'( "'%'(" is an acronym for "as soon as possible." need to finish these
reports. )y boss needs
them '%'(.
at stake "'t stake" means at risk. &n a little nervous
about giving this
presentation. here&s a
lot at stake.
back to s$uare one o go "back to s$uare one" means to start
something over again.
*ur programmers
identified what they
thought the problem
was with the software.
'fter working for
several hours, it turns
out that the problem is
something totally
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different, so it looks like
we have to go back to
s$uare one.
back to the drawing
board
o go "back to the drawing board" means to start
something over again, and go back to the planning
stage of something.
he prototype wasn&t
successful. !e have to
go back to the drawing
board.
backroom deal ' "backroom deal" is an agreement or decision
that is made without the public knowing about it.
think they got the
government contract
because of a backroom
deal.
ballpark number ' "ballpark number" is a very ine+act estimate. m not sure what a
%uper -owl
commercial costs, but
to give you a ballpark
figure, d say about
three million dollars.
behind someone&s
back
o do something "behind someone&s back" means
to do something without someone&s knowledge
and in a way that is not fair.
%he didn&t think it would
be fair to go behind his
back and talk to
management, so she
confronted him directly.
behind the scenes !hat happens in secret or not in front of the
general public is said to happen "behind the
scenes."
hey make it look so
effortless, but they do a
lot of hard work and
planning behind the
scenes.
big picture verything that is involved with a particular
situation is called "the big picture."
ven though we all
have very specific
tasks to do, our
manager makes sure
we don&t lose sight of
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the big picture.
blue collar ' "blue collar worker" is someone who works with
his or her hands manufacturing, construction,
maintenance, etc.0. he opposite is a "white collar
worker." ' white collar worker is someone who
works in an office customer service, management,
sales, etc.0 1-lue collar1and 1white collar10 can
also be used to describe a ob, position, or a place.
t&s a blue collar town
with a lot of farmers
and factory workers.
by the book o do things "by the book" means to do things
according to company policy or law. t means to
follow the rules 35.
here are a lot of
regulatory industries
that audit us on a
regular basis. t&s
important that we do
everything by the book.
call it a day o "call it a day" means to decide to stop working
for the day.
!ell, 6ohn, it&s 7
and &m getting hungry.
8ow about we call it a
day9
catch someone off
guard
o "catch someone off guard" means to surprise
someone by doing something that he or she was
not e+pecting.
)ike was caught off
guard when they asked
him to direct the
meeting.
cave or cave in0 f someone "caves" or "caves in" it means that the
person gives in to something or agrees to
something that he or she previously did not want
to accept.
he employees
complained about the
change in policy, but
the supervisor refused
to cave in.
change of pace "' change of pace" is something different from a
normal routine or schedule.
ts nice to go on
business trips because
its a change of pace.
come up short o "come up short" means to try to achieve
something but fail. !e often say that someone has
he charity fund raiser
was supposed to raise
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1come up short1 when someone fails to achieve a
goal, but not completely.
three million dollars,
but they came up short.
corner a market o "corner a market" means to dominate a
particular market.
'pple has cornered the
market on mp: players.
hey have a very large
percentage of market
share.
cut corners o "cut corners" means to take shortcuts and find
an easier or cheaper way to do something.
!e don&t cut corners
on our lu+ury products.
hey are all made to
high standards with
materials of the highest
$uality.
cut one&s losses f you stop doing something that is unproductive
and won&t ever generate results, you "cut your
losses."
'dvertising through
that company was
e+pensive and we
didn&t see an increase
in sales. %o, we
decided to cut our
losses and stop doing
business with them.
cutthroat "#utthroat" is used to describe something that is
very intense, aggressive and merciless.
n business school, the
competition was cut
throat.
diamond in the
rough
' "diamond in the rough" is something or someone
that has a lot of potential but first re$uires a lot of
work.
8e was a diamond in
the rough. 8e was
really intelligent and
had great ideas, but his
management and
nglish skills weren&t
very good.
easy come, easy go "asy come, easy go," is an e+pression used to ' lot of people who
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communicate that something gained easily is also
lost easily. !e use this e+pression after something
has been lost.
inherit money waste it
on stupid things.
guess it&s easy come,
easy go.
fiftyfifty "<iftyfifty" means something is divided e$ually
=5 for one person, =5 for the other person.
)y business partner
and split everything
fiftyfifty.
from the ground up f you start a business, proect, or something else
from >ero, you start it "from the ground up."
-ill ?ates built
)icrosoft from the
ground up.
game plan ' "game plan" is a strategy or plan. hey&re not sure what
their game plan is for
the upcoming election.
get back in/into the
swing of things
o "get back in/into the swing of things" means to
get used to doing something after you have had a
break from that activity.
*ur company shuts
down operations for
three weeks during the
holiday season. !hen
go back to work in
6anuary, it&s always
difficult to get back in
the swing of things.
get down to
business
o "get down to business" means to stop making
small talk and start talking about serious topics
related to business.
!ell, everyone&s here,
and know everyone is
very busy. %o, let&s get
down to business and
talk about the proposal.
get something off
the ground
o "get something off the ground" means to start a
proect or business.
!e&re very glad that
the planning process is
over. !e&re looking
forward to getting the
proect off the ground.
get the ball rolling o "get the ball rolling1means to start something a !e really need to get
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work proect, for e+ample0. the ball rolling on this
proect. he deadline is
in 6une, and it&s
already 'pril.
get/be on the good
side of someone
f someone likes you, you are "on the good side" of
that person.
always remember my
coworkers& birthdays
and get them a card or
small gift. like to get
on people&s good side.
get/have foot in the
door
o "get or have your foot in the door" means to
take a lowlevel position with a company with the
goal of eventually getting a better position with the
same company in the future.
)y son ust took a low
paying internship
position with a large
company. 8e was
happy to get his foot in
the door at a well
known, respected
company.
give someone a pat
on the back
o "give someone a pat on the back" means to tell
someone that he or she did a good ob.
he boss gave -rian a
pat on the back for
coming up with such a
good idea.
give
something/someon
e the thumbs down
o "give something or someone the thumbs down"
means to deny approval.
can&t believe she gave
us the thumbs down.
thought it was a great
idea.
give
something/someon
e the thumbs up
o "give something or someone the thumbs up"
means to approve.
hey gave our new
proposal the thumbs
up. !e&re going out to
celebrate tonight.
go broke o "go broke" means to go bankrupt or to lose all
the money a person or business had.
here was too much
competition and their
e+penses were too
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high. hey eventually
went broke.
go down the drain !hen you waste or lose something, it is said to
"go down the drain."
8e dropped out of
college in his third year
and never continued
his studies. 'll of his
hard work and money
went down the drain.
go the e+tra mile o "go the e+tra mile" means to do more than what
people e+pect of you.
!e go the e+tra mile
for our customers. f
someone is dissatisfied
with a purchase, we
refund their money and
offer them a discount
on their ne+t purchase.
go through the roof f something is "going through the roof," it means it
is increasing very $uickly.
!e&re really happy that
our number of
<acebook followers
has gone through the
roof.
gray area f something is in a "gray area" it means that it is
something undefined that is not easily categori>ed.
asked our lawyers if it
was legal, and they
said it wasn&t clear. t&s
in a gray area.
groundbreaking f something is "groundbreaking" it means it is
new and innovative.
he i(hone was a
groundbreaking piece
of technology when it
was released in 2@.
hands are tied f you do not have any control over a situation,
your "hands are tied."
would love to get you
a ob at my company,
but my hands are tied.
)anagement isn&t
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hiring any additional
employees this year.
have someone&s
work cut out
f you have a lot of work to do or a particularly
difficult assignment, you "have your work cut out
for you."
%he has to sell A:=,
worth of products by
the end of the month.
%he has her work cut
out for her.
hit the nail on the
head
o "hit the nail on the head" means to do or say
something 35 correctly.
agree with 6ohn
35. think he really
hit the nail on the head.
in a nutshell "n a nutshell" means in a few words. n a nutshell, this book
is about how to
motivate employees.
in full swing f a proect is "in full swing," it means that it has
been completely started and that it is progressing
or moving as fast as it ever will.
#onstruction on the
new site is in full swing
now.
in the black f a company is "in the black," it means that they
are making a profit.
!e&re not having a
great year, but at least
we&re in the black.
in the driver&s seat o be "in the driver&s seat" means to be in control. &m not used to being in
the driver&s seat.
should probably buy
some management
books.
in the red f a company is "in the red," it means that they are
not profitable and are operating at a loss.
!hen started my own
business, we were in
the red for the first two
years. !e didn&t see a
profit until the third
year.
keep your eye on
the ball
o "keep your eye on the ball1 means to focus and
concentrate on what you want to achieve.
know we can do it.
!e ust need to keep
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our eye on the ball and
not lose our focus.
last straw he "last straw" means the last annoyance,
disturbance, or betrayal which causes someone to
give up, lose his or her patience, or become very
angry.
*ur boss was unhappy
with -rian&s
performance for a
while, but when he
came to work three
hours late without
calling, it was the last
straw.
learn the ropes o "learn the ropes" means to learn the basics of
something.
like my new position.
m starting to learn the
ropes.
long shot ' "long shot" is something that has a very low
probability of happening.
!inning the lottery is a
long shot, but millions
of people still buy
lottery tickets.
loophole ' legal "loophole" occurs f a law is unclear or
omits information. his lack of legal clarity allows
people or corporations to take advantage of the
situation and pay less in ta+es or gain some other
advantage.
%ome people complain
that millionaires avoid
paying ta+es by finding
loopholes in ta+ laws.
lose ground
opposite is to "gain
ground"0
o "lose ground" means to lose some type of an
advantage market share, for e+ample0 to a
competitor.
'pple lost some
ground to %amsung
last $uarter.
loselose situation
also called a "no
win situation"0
' "loselose situation" is when someone has to
choose between various options and all the
options are bad.
t&s a loselose
situation. f they lay off
more workers, they&ll
get bad press. f they
don&t lay off more
workers, they won&t be
able to compete.
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ninetofive ' "ninetofive" is a ob during normal working
hours. he term came into e+istence because
many work days start at B ') and end at = ().
%he was tired of
working a ninetofive
ob, so she took her
savings and started a
restaurant.
no brainer f a decision is really obvious or really easy to
make, the decision is a "no brainer."
aking the new ob was
a no brainer. hey
offered me more
money, a better
schedule, and more
vacation days.
no strings attached f something is given without e+pecting anything in
return, it is given with "no strings attached."
hey will let you try the
product for free with no
strings attached. f you
don&t like it, there is no
pressure to buy it or
give them anything in
return.
no time to lose f there is "no time to lose," it means that there is a
lot of pressure to complete something $uickly.
told them &d send the
email by the end of the
day and it&s already
44=. need to get to
work. here&s no time
to lose.
not going to fly f a solution isn&t effective, people say that it "isn&t
going to fly."
don&t think that idea&s
going to fly. Cet&s keep
generating ideas.
off the top of one&s
head
f someone says something "off the top of his or
her head," it means that he or she gives a
response without thinking about it for a long time
or doing any research on the subect.
have no idea how
many branches they
have. *ff the top of my
head, &d say about 2.
on a roll f someone is "on a roll," it means that he or she *ur profits have been
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has had several successes in a row. above our proected
numbers for five
months in a row. !e&re
really on a roll.
on the ball o be "one the ball" means to be alert and aware
of things.
)y new personal
assistant is working out
well. 8e&s really on the
ball.
on the same page
page
f two people are "on the same page," they are in
agreement about something.
Cet&s go over the
details of what we
agreed on ust to make
sure that we&re on the
same page.
on top of something o be "on top of something" means to be in control
of a situation and aware of changes.
read a lot to stay on
top of the latest
changes in my industry.
on your toes o be "on your toes" means to be alert. %tay on your toes.
'nything can happen.
out in the open f something is "out in the open" it is public
knowledge and not hidden from people.
think it&s a good policy
to do things out in the
open because people
get suspicious if you do
things in secret.
out of the loop
opposite in the
loop0
o be "out of the loop" means to not know
something that a select group of people knows.
he opposite, 1to be in the loop,1 means to be part
of a select group with knowledge that others do
not have.
felt like was out of
the loop after being on
vacation for two weeks.
pink slip f someone gets the "pink slip," it means they have
been fired.
hey gave him the pink
slip. 8e wasn&t
performing very well.
play hardball o "play hardball" means to be competitive in a 8e played hardball to
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cruel way and without showing mercy. (laying
hardball means doing anything possible to win.
get where he is, so
would be careful what
you say and do around
him.
put all someone&s
eggs in one basket
o "put all someone&s eggs in one basket," means
to rely on only one thing to bring you success.
t&s not good to only
invest in the stock
market. Dou don&t want
to put all your eggs in
one basket.
put the cart before
the horse
o "put the cart before the horse" means to do or
think about things in the wrong order.
hey were trying to find
investors without even
having a business plan.
hey were putting the
cart before the horse.
raise the bar o "raise the bar" means to set the standards or
e+pectations higher, usually by achieving or
creating something better than what had
previously e+isted.
he new software is
getting great reviews. t
looks like they&ve really
raised the bar for the
competition.
read between the
lines
o "read between the lines" means to understand
something that wasn&t communicated directly.
Eeading between the lines involves understanding
what someone is implying or suggesting but not
saying directly.
8e didn&t say that he
wants to leave the
company, but can
read between the lines.
8e&s thinking of getting
a new ob.
red tape "Eed tape" refers to e+cessive rules, procedures,
and regulations that make it difficult to accomplish
something. !e usually use "red tape" to talk about
government re$uirements that create difficult,
timeconsuming barriers for people and
businesses.
he new law is going to
create a lot of e+tra red
tape and we&re going to
have to pay our
lawyers a lot more
money.
rock the boat o "rock the boat" means to cause problems or 8e thought about
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disrupt a peaceful situation. demanding a raise, but
then he decided he
didn&t want to rock the
boat.
roundtheclock "Eound the clock" means 24 hours a day. !e have roundthe
clock production at all
our manufacturing
facilities.
run/go around in
circles
o "run or go0 around in circles" means to do the
same thing over and over again without getting
any results.
&ve made phone calls
all day and haven&t
made a single sale.
feel like &ve been
running around in
circles all day.
safe bet ' "safe bet" means something that will probably
happen.
t&s a safe bet that
smart phones will be
much more advanced
in 3 years.
same boat f people are in the same situation, they are in the
"same boat."
!e&re all worried about
losing our obs. !e&re
in the same boat.
second nature !hen someone learns how to do something so
well that it appears that he or she was born
knowing how to do it, we say that the activity is
"second nature" to him or her.
8e&s been a computer
programmer for ten
years. 't this point,
programming is second
nature him.
see eye to eye o "see eye to eye" with someone means to agree
with that person.
!e don&t always see
eye to eye, but
respect her opinions
and appreciate her
honesty.
see something o "see something through" means to do told my boss that
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through something until it is finished. really wanted to see
my current proect
through before taking
on another proect.
sever ties o "sever ties" means to end a relationship. !e had to sever ties
with several of our
suppliers due to late
shipments.
shoot something
down
o "shoot something down" means to deny
something, such as a proposal or idea.
t&s best not to shoot
ideas down during a
brainstorming session.
he goal is to generate
ideas, not to critici>e
them.
sky&s the limit f there is no limit to the possibilities of something,
people often say "the sky&s the limit."
!ith their commission
structure, the sky&s the
limit to what you can
make.
small talk "%mall talk" is conversation about unimportant
topics that do not offend people the weather, for
e+ample0.
!e typically spend
about 3= minutes
making small talk
before we start our
meetings.
smooth sailing or
clear sailing0
"%mooth sailing" is a term used to describe a
situation where success is achieved without
difficulties.
*nce our largest
competitor went out of
business, it was
smooth sailing.
snail mail "%nail mail" is the term used for the traditional mail
that goes through the post office. he term is used
because a 1snail1 is a slowmoving animal.
f you want to fill out
form =2 and send it
to the government, you
have to do it using snail
mail. hey don&t allow
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you to scan the
document.
stand one&s ground f you "stand your ground," it means that you will
not change your opinion or position on an issue.
!e tried to change the
dress code, but 8uman
Eesources stood their
ground.
start off on the right
foot
o "start off on the right foot" means to start
something in a positive way.
!e offered them a very
generous price on their
first order and
everything shipped on
time. !e really started
off on the right foot.
start off on the
wrong foot
o "start off on the wrong foot" means to start
something in a negative way.
ust switched cable
companies. hey
overcharged me for the
first month&s service.
hey really started off
on the wrong foot.
state of the art %omething that is "state of the art" is modern and
technologically advanced.
-ill ?ates lives in a
stateoftheart home
with a lot of modern
technology that most
people don&t have
access to.
take something
lying down
o "take something lying down" means to accept
something unpleasant without fighting back.
he proposed law
would kill our industry,
but we&re not going to
take it lying down.
!e&re going to fight
back and try to make
sure the law doesn&tget passed.
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take the bull by the
horns
o "take the bull by the horns" means to directly
confront a difficult situation.
*ne of our midlevel
managers wasn&t very
popular and was
causing some
problems, so we took
the bull by the horns
and replaced him with
somebody else.
talk someone into
something
o "talk someone into something" means to
convince someone to do something.
was hesitant to
redesign our website,
but my employees
talked me into it. &m
glad they did. he new
site is much better than
the previous one.
talk someone out of
something
o "talk someone out of something" means to
convince someone not to do something.
wanted to make a real
estate investment, but
my financial adviser
talked me out of it.
the elephant in the
room
"he elephant in the room" refers to a big problem
or controversial issue which is obvious, but which
no one wants to talk about.
!e should have been
talking about our huge
debt, but it seemed like
no one wanted to talk
about the elephant in
the room.
think big o "think big" means to have high goals and big
plans for the future.
&m not content with ust
opening one or two
more stores. &m
thinking big think
we can open 3 more
stores in the ne+t fiveyears.
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think outside the
bo+
o "think outside the bo+" means to think of
creative solutions instead of common ones.
hinking outside the bo+ involves thinking of
unconventional ideas.
#reating a completely
new product that no
one has ever sold
before is an e+ample of
thinking outside the
bo+.
throw in the towel o "throw in the towel" means to $uit. was trying to learn
(ortuguese, but got
frustrated and threw in
the towel.
time&s up "ime&s up" means that the time for something or
someone has ended.
think his time&s up as
the #*. hey&re going
to replace him as soon
as they find a suitable
candidate.
touch base o "touch base" means to make contact with
someone.
Cet me make a few
phone calls to try to get
an answer to your
$uestion. &ll touch base
with you later today.
twist someone&s
arm
o "twist someone&s arm" means to persuade or
convince someone to do something that he or she
does not want to do.
he owner thought the
advertising budget was
a little high. !e had to
twist his arm to get him
to agree to it.
under the table %omething done secretly and usually illegally0 in
the business world is done "under the table."
o avoid paying ta+es,
they paid some of their
employees under the
table.
up in the air f something is undecided, it is "up in the air." !e&re looking for a test
market right now, but
nothing has been
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decided yet.
verything&s still up in
the air.
uphill battle %omething that is difficult to achieve because of
obstacles and difficulties is an "uphill battle."
!inning the election is
going to be an uphill
battle. 8e doesn&t have
a lot of support at the
moment.
upper hand f someone has an advantage over someone else,
he or she has the "upper hand."
8e was more
e+perienced and well
respected, so he had
the upper hand in the
argument.
white collar ' "white collar worker" is someone who works in
an office customer service, management, sales,
etc.0 he opposite of a white collar worker is a
1blue collar worker.1 ' blue collar worker is
someone who works with his or her hands
manufacturing, construction, maintenance, etc.0
1!hite collar1 and 1blue collar1can also be used to
describe a ob, position, or place.
here are mostly
manufacturing
positions here. here
aren&t a lot of white
collar obs here.
winwin situation ' "winwin situation" is a situation where everyone
involved gains something.
!e were happy to get
the contract, and they
were happy to get such
a good price. t was a
winwin situation.
word of mouth f something spreads by "word of mouth," people
hear about it by informal conversation with friends,
family members, ac$uaintances, etc.
' lot of local
restaurants rely on
word of mouth to get
new customers.
writing on the wall he "writing on the wall" refers to the evidence and
clues that something usually negative0 is going to
&m going to get my
resume ready. can
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happen. see the writing on the
wall.
yes man ' "yes man" is someone who always agrees with
his or her superiors.
he company isn&t
looking to hire
someone who is going
to try to make a lot of
changes. hey&re
basically ust looking
for a yes man.