Negotiation Vocabulary

word meaning example sentence

part of speech

alternatives other options We can't offer you the raise you requested, but
noun let's discuss some other alternatives.

amplify expand; give more Could you amplify on your proposal please?
verb information

arbitration conflict that is addressed by We're better to settle this between us, because a
noun using a neutral third party formal arbitration will cost both of us money.

bargain try to change a person's We bargained on the last issue for over an hour
verb mind by using various before we agreed to take a break.
tactics

bottom-line the lowest one is willing to I'll accept a raise of one dollar per hour, but that's
noun go my bottom-line.

collective together This is a collective concern, and it isn't fair to

adj discuss it without Marie present.

compensate make up for a loss If you are willing to work ten extra hours a week
verb we will compensate you by paying you overtime.

comply agree I'd be willing to comply if you can offer me my

verb own private office.

compromise changing one's mind/terms We are willing to compromise on this issue

verb slightly in order to find a because it means so much to you.
word meaning example sentence
part of speech

resolution

concession a thing that is granted or I think we can offer all of these concessions, but
noun accepted not all at once.

conflict general term for It is impossible to engage in conflict

resolution negotiations resolution when one of the parties refuses to
noun listen.

confront present an issue to someone I confronted my boss about being undervalued,

verb directly and we're going to talk about things on Monday.

consensus agreement by all It would be great if we could come to

noun a consensus by 5:00 P.M.

cooperation the working together I have appreciated your cooperation throughout

noun these negotiations.

counter the offer/request which is In their counter proposal they suggested that we
proposal presented second in keep their company name rather than creating a
noun response to the first new one.
proposal

counterattack present other side of an Before we could start our counterattack they
verb/noun issue suggested we sign a contract.

counterpart person on the other side of I tried to close the discussions at noon, but
noun the negotiations my counterpart would not stop talking.
word meaning example sentence
part of speech

cordially politely In the past I have had little respect for that client,
verb/noun but today she spoke cordially and listened to my
point of view.

demands needs/expectations that one side They had some last minute demands that
noun believes it deserves were entirely unrealistic.

deadlock point where neither party will give When the discussions came to a deadlock we
noun in wrote up a letter of intent to continue the
negotiations next week.

dispute argument/conflict I was hoping to avoid discussing last

noun year's dispute, but Monica is still holding a
grudge.

dominate have the most control/stronger Max has such a loud voice, he tends
verb presence to dominate the conversations.

entitled be deserving of My contract says that I am entitled to full

adj benefits after six months of employment.

flexible open/willing to change We have always been flexible in terms of your

adj working hours.

haggling arguing back and forth (often about We've been haggling over this issue for too
verb prices) long now.
demands needs/expectations that one side They had some last minute demands that
noun believes it deserves were entirely unrealistic.

hostility long-term anger towards another I want you to know that we don't have
noun any hostility towards your company despite
last year's mixup.

high-ball make a request that is much higher I'm planning to high-ball my expectations
verb than you expect to receive when I open the discussion.

impulse quick decision without thought or I acted on impulse when I signed that six-
noun time month contract.

indecisive has difficulty choosing/making a They were so indecisive we finally asked

adj decision them to take a break and come back next
week.

leverage (bargaining power) something that We have a little bit of leverage because we
noun gives one party a greater chance at are the only stationary company in town.
succeeding over another

log-rolling trading one favour for another After a bit of log-rolling we came to an
noun agreement that pleased both of us.

low-ball offer something much lower than I was expecting my boss to low-ball in the
verb you think the opponent will ask for initial offer, but he proposed a fair salary
increase.

mislead convince by altering or not telling They misled us into thinking that everything
verb the whole truth about something could be resolved today.

mutual agreed by both or all The decision to call off the merger
demands needs/expectations that one side They had some last minute demands that
noun believes it deserves were entirely unrealistic.

adj was mutual.

objective goal for the outcome My prime objective is to have my family

noun members added to my benefits plan.

point of person's ideas/ thoughts From my point of view it makes more sense
view to wait another six months.
noun

pressure work hard to convince another of an He pressured me to accept the terms by using
verb idea intimidation tactics.

proposal argument to present While I listened to their proposal I noted each

noun of their objectives.

receptive open to/interested in an idea His positive body language demonstrated that
adj he was receptive to our suggestions.

resentment anger held onto from a previous Mary's resentment stems from our not
noun conflict choosing her to head the project.

resistance a display of opposition We didn't expect so much resistance on the

noun final issue.

resolve end conflict, come to an agreement Before you can resolve your differences you'll
verb both need to calm down.
demands needs/expectations that one side They had some last minute demands that
noun believes it deserves were entirely unrealistic.

tactics strategies used to get one's goals There are certain tactics that all skillful
noun met negotiators employ.

tension feeling of stress/anxiety caused by There was a lot of tension in the room when
noun heavy conflict George threatened to quit.

trade-off terms that are offered in return for Lower payments over a longer period of time
noun something else sounded like a fair trade-off until we asked
about interest charges.

ultimatum a final term that has serious His ultimatum was that if I didn't agree to
noun consequences if not met give him the raise he asked for, he'd quit today
without two week's notice.

unrealistic very unlikely to happen It's unrealistic to think that we will have all of
adj our demands met.

victory a win We considered it a victory because they

noun agreed to four of our five terms.

yield to give in to another's requests The client will only yield to our conditions, if
verb we agree to work over the holiday weekend.

Phrases You Can Use During a Negotiation

Beginning the Negotiation and Setting the Agenda

The way you start a discussion is extremely important because it sets the tone for the entire
negotiation. It is important to be diplomatic (polite) and efficient at the same time, so that you
can maximize your outcome. People generally start negotiations by agreeing on the agenda.
The agenda consists of all the important points that need to be discussed. You can use the
following phrases to start a negotiation.
1. Let’s start by having a look at the agenda.
2. Before we begin, shall we have a look at the main points on the agenda?
3. Should we have a look at the main points for today’s discussion?

Listening and Asking for Proposals

In a negotiation, it is sometimes more important to listen to what the other party has to
say than to start by asking for what you want to get out of the negotiation. Be ready to listen
and take notes—your partner will appreciate your ability to listen, and you may get a lot of
important information you can later use! Ask your partner to give you details about what they
want by using any of the following phrases.
4. What are your views on…?
5. Do you have any suggestions for…?
6. Would you like to suggest a course of action for…?
7. How do you feel about…?

Making Suggestions and Proposals

Suggestions and proposals may be presented at any point during negotiations. If you have a
proposal to make, you can introduce it by using these phrases:
8. We think the best way is to…
9. We propose/recommend that…
When the negotiation reaches deadlock, someone has to come up with solutions. It is really
important to keep your mind open and also help your partner see things through different
perspectives. Both of these will help the negotiation to be effective.
10. I’d like to suggest a solution.

Arguing for Proposals and Views Presented

After you suggest solutions, it is crucial to support them with arguments. If the arguments are
sound and presented coherently (clearly), you stand much higher chances of getting what you
want out of the negotiation. Introduce your arguments with phrases like:
11. The most important reason for this is…
12. I am basing my solution on three ideas/points/reasons: Firstly,… Secondly,… Last
but not least,…
13. One of the key reasons for this is…

Agreeing with Proposals

When your partner presents an acceptable suggestion, you can express your agreement by
using any of the following phrases:
14. I agree with your suggestion.
15. I think your proposal is acceptable.
16. That sounds great to us.
Disagreeing with Proposals and Giving Reasons for Disagreement
Disagreeing is one of the most difficult things to do: You don’t want to offend your partner,
but it is important to let them know when you are not on the same page. You can disagree by
using a diplomatic tone if you introduce your concerns like this:
17. I have some reservations about…
18. Unfortunately, our position is different from yours.
19. I’m afraid we can’t agree on…

Compromising
When you simply cannot get everything you want, you will need to meet your partner
halfway. Here are some ways to express you are willing to accept some terms in exchange for
others:
20. We might be able to work on…, if you could…
21. We could offer you…, if you think you can agree on…
22. Offering you… is the best we can do right now. However, we’d need your approval
on…
23. In exchange for…, would you agree to…?

Clarifying
Whenever you feel your partner is being vague or ambiguous (imprecise or uncertain), it is
extremely important to clarify things on the spot. Otherwise, the negotiation may take the
wrong direction and it may be too late to set the record straight. So play it safe and clarify
details early on by using any of these phrases:
24. Let me make sure I got your point.
25. I’m not sure I understood your position. Could you please tell me again how you feel
about…?
26. I just want to make sure I got this part straight.

Concluding
Before you end the negotiation, it is always a good idea to recap (review or go over again) the
main points you agreed or disagreed on. Here are some things you could say:
27. Let’s look at what we decided to do.
28. Shall we try to sum up the main points of our discussion?
29. Let’s sum this up really quickly to make sure we are on the same page.