business jargon

Question 1

To stay on top of (something)

Answer 1

This means to stay in control, and not get behind or let your work pile up.

Eg: I’ve got so much work on at the moment that it’s difficult to stay on top of it all.

Question 2

To pull strings

Answer 2

What happens when you pull the strings to a puppet? It does what you want it to do. This phrase means to use your power or influence to make something happen that would usually be difficult or impossible.

Eg: People aren’t usually allowed to schedule meeting with the directors if I pull some strings, I might be able to find a time for you to meet them.

Question 3

Downtime

Answer 3

This is time when you are not busy working on your main job.

Eg: If you have some downtime this week, please brainstorm some ideas for our next team outing.

Question 4

Pull it off

Answer 4

Pull it off means to succeed in doing something difficult or unexpected. You ‘pull it off’ for example, when you weren’t prepared to answer a question but you managed to say something clever:

Business example> “He wasn’t prepared on the subject but he pulled it off thanks to his broad knowledge of the sector and quick thinking.”

General example> “Have you heard about the surprise party Jack is planning for Marie? It’s an ambitious plan, so let’s see if he can really pull it off!”

Question 5

Up in the air

Answer 5

This means when things are highly uncertain and decisions have not been made

Business example> “There are too many things up in the air at the minute so we haven’t signed the contract yet.”

General English> “We still don’t know what we’re doing this summer because things with Tom’s job are so up in the air.”

Question 6

I could use a hand

Answer 6

This is a very common expression to say you would welcome something, or that you wish for something. It expresses a feeling in a very polite way.

Business example> “Are you all set Mark?”

“Actually, I could use a hand with analysing this research. There’s a lot more than we anticipated.”

General example>

“I could use a hand in the kitchen please!”

Question 7

Ballpark figure

Answer 7

Ballpark figure = rough estimate

Business example > I’ll need to go away and cost this out carefully, but as a ballpark figure I’d say that it’ll be about 1.5 million euros.

Question 8

Take it from there

Answer 8

(Let’s) take it from there = when you don’t know exactly how an activity will play out after a certain moment.

Business example > Let’s complete the the initial analysis of the new product and then we will take it from there.

Question 9

Not going to fly

Answer 9

Not / ain’t going to fly = a proposal or something else, that we know is not going to be approved.

Business example > I doubt this proposal is going to fly with the boss.

Question 10

Push back

Answer 10

Push back = to delay something so that it happens later than planned

Business example > I had to push back the request to increase the effort by 20%, we are already at full capacity and we don’t have room for a further increase of the workload.

Question 11

Push back

Answer 11

Push back = to delay something so that it happens later than planned

Business example > I had to push back the request to increase the effort by 20%, we are already at full capacity and we don’t have room for a further increase of the workload.

Question 12

Tackle a problem

Answer 12

This phrase is similar to the phrase above, so to deal with/confront a problem.

Tackle is one of the several expressions that are derived from the football field. See also keep an eye on the ball or get the ball rolling.

Question 13

What do you make of ….?

Answer 13

What do you make of ….? = when you want to enquire about the view of someone on something, but it is usually something that you don’t fully understand or not agree with.

Business example > “What do you make of the new guy?” “He’s a little quirky, but I think he’s nice enough.”

Question 14

Cut corners

Answer 14

The new filing system won’t work if we cut corners.

“To cut corners” is to complete a task in a fast and careless way. To do something without paying attention to details, thereby making mistakes or causing new problems.

Question 15

Back to the drawing board

Answer 15

The client hated your proposal so we’ll have to go back to the drawing board.

He’s going back to the drawing board on this one.

To go “back to the drawing board” means to start again from the beginning with a completely new idea. The phrase makes you think of a blackboard being wiped clean. It is most often used when an idea or project is rejected.

It sounds quite friendly when you use it to say that you’re scrapping your own idea. Asking someone else to “go back to the drawing board” on a project is usually a bit strong!

Question 16

Call it a day

Answer 16

Right team, we’ve made plenty of progress, I think it’s time to call it a day!

The trial hasn’t worked, I’m afraid we’re going to have to call it a day.

To “call it a day” means that you are giving up on something. This can refer to taking a break on a project because you have reached a good point to stop, or to stopping something completely. It can be negative or positive, depending on the context.

Taken literally, it is a phrase stating that the working day is officially over: that was a whole day, I declare that day finished!

Question 17

Touch base

Answer 17

If you could just touch base with Ritesh after the meeting, that would be great.

To “touch base” with someone is to talk to them, whether digitally or in person, usually briefly. It usually described keeping someone up-to-date with developments on something you are both working on.

This is an expression that business jargon has adapted from the world of sport. In baseball, players touch base with their feet in order to be “safe” or to record an out.

Question 18

Keep me in the loop

Answer 18

Keep Stuart in the loop when discussing the merger, please.

Keep me in the loop on decisions about the targets for the next quarter.

To “keep me/her/him/them in the loop” means to keep someone involved and updated about developments in a project. It comes from “looping” someone into an email chain — that is, cc’ing them into the digital conversation. Check out our guide to writing emails in English for more on this.

You can “keep someone in the loop” by informing them of what happens in meetings, and alerting them when decisions are made.

Question 19

Drill down into

Answer 19

I think we can drill down into this further when we meet with the Product team.

To “drill down into” something is to explore it in more depth.

Question 20

As of yet

Answer 20

As of yet, we have no plans to hire a Social Media Manager.

This is very commonly seen in emails, and means “at the moment,” This is another time when business jargon defies English grammar rules, yet still comes across as formal!

Question 21

Cut to the chase

Answer 21

Let’s cut to the chase: are you going to finish the report on time, or not?

To “cut to the chase” means to “get to the point without wasting time.” It was first used in the movie industry to mean “skip to the car chase” — the most interesting and action-packed part!

It is quite an informal and lesser-used business idiom, but a useful term to be aware of.

Question 22

Down the line

Answer 22

They won’t make a difference now, but we will benefit from positive reviews down the line.

“Down the line” is a friendly expression for “at some point in the future,” It generally refers to an action that will occur in a few months’ or years’ time, but this time frame is vague. Anything that is promised “down the line” will almost certainly happen. That said, it is a useful phrase for making promises you can’t necessarily keep or referring to results you are not confident in!

Question 23

To learn the ropes

Answer 23

Imagine that you are on an old-fashioned sailboat. The first thing you would learn is how to tie knots and work the sails. In other words, you would learn how all the ropes work! That is what this phrase is referring to.

To learn the ropes means to learn how to do your job or a particular task, especially if you have no prior experience. Because of this, it is commonly used when referring to new employees in training.

If you change it to say “to teach someone the ropes,” you can use it to describe a boss or more senior person helping a new employee understand their role and responsibilities.

For example:

“Hey Paul, how’s your new job?”
“It’s great but I’ve only been there for two weeks so I’m still learning the ropes.“
“I’ve got a great manager who’s been teaching me the ropes, so I’m learning quickly!”