1. The economy would be better if…………………..

= Something that is certain to happen= It’s a safe

bet that computer processor speed will more than triple within the next 10 years.
Person /thing to be good or successful ===She was a safe bet for the account manager position
2. See eye to eye To agree with somebody My boss doesn’t see eye to
eye with me about our marketing campaign.
3. Same boat= To be in the same difficult situation as someone else =None of us has any money
left, so we’re all in the same boat.

1. Work would be more fun if ...................................................................................

2. What I would like to change in my office is .........................................................
3. The most important quality for a manager is .......................................................
4. If I could change the way my company was run, I would ....................................
5. Every manager should be able to ........................................................................
6. The best way to relax after a tiring day is ............................................................
7. The thing that irritates me most in my company is ................................................
8. The economy would be better if…………………..
9. Every employee should know ..............................................................................
10. Appearance is important at work but ...................................................................

3. If I were transferred abroad, the country I would prefer to be sent to is ..............

4.

5. What I would like to find in an airport is ...............................................................

6. I would like to have an opportunity to ..................................................................

7.

8.

9.

10.

11.

12. Candidates nowadays should ..............................................................................

13.
14. If I had the time I would ........................................................................................

15. It would be a good idea if all companies ..............................................................

16. Travelling is tiring but .........................................................................................

17. If I had to attend fewer meetings I could ...............................................................

18. If I were sent to work in another country, what I would miss most is ....................

19. The ideal retirement system would be ..................................................................

20. The economy would be better if…………………..

21. If I were sent back from the past, I would change...................................................................

 Catch someone off guard

 Mike was caught off guard when they asked him to direct the meeting.
 The strength of the typhoon caught many residents off guard.
 The news caught her completely off guard. She didn’t know what to say.

To "catch someone off guard" means to surprise someone by doing something that he or she was not
expecting and makes the person feel confused or uncertain.

 call it a day
Well, John, it's 7:00 and I'm getting hungry. How about we call it a day?
Im getting tired now. Let’s call it a day
After 14 years of working in this company, I think it’s time to call it a day.

To "call it a day" means to decide to stop working for the day.

To stop what you are doing because you don’t want to do any more or think you have done
enough.

 corner a market

To "corner a market" means to Apple has cornered the market on

dominate a particular market. mp3 players. They have a large
percentage of market share.

 get the To "get the ball rolling" We need to get the ball rolling on
 ball means to start this project. The deadline is in June,

rolling something (a project, and it's already April.

for example).

1. It is impossible for young people to find a (good) job today without help from
someone.

2. A successful salesperson knows the strengths and weaknesses of competing

products.

3. Small companies cannot offer employees opportunities for promotion.

4. There is more creativity in multinational companies than in small firms.

5. Some companies do not adhere to proper rules of conduct.

6. It is dishonest for companies to avoid paying income tax in the countries where they
are established.

1. Breakfast is the most important meal of the day.

2. Swimming in the ocean is better than swimming in a
public pool.
3. Alcohol should be illegal.
4. Children should provide room and board for their aging
parents.
5. Studying grammar is more important than practising
conversation skills.
6. Television is the leading cause of violence in today's
society.
 7. Dogs make better companions than cats.
8. Smoking should be permitted in public places.
9. Females are better students than males.
10. A parent shouldn't pierce a baby's ears.
11. Women should be allowed to go topless in public.
12. Everyone should plan their own funeral.
13. Reading English is more difficult than writing English.
14. Summer is the best season of the year.
15. Children under 13 should not be allowed to babysit.
16. High school students should wear uniforms.

 Talk someone into something

To convince/ persuade someone to do something
I was reluctant to redesign our website, but my employees talked me
into it.
He’s against the idea but I think I can talk him into.
 Talk someone out of something
To convince someone not to do something
We wanted to take on more debt, but our CFO talked us
out of it.
Chief Finance officer.
Can you talk them out of selling the house.
 Catch someone off guard
 Mike was caught off guard when they asked him to direct the meeting.
 The strength of the typhoon caught many residents off guard.
 The news caught her completely off guard. She didn’t know what to say.

To "catch someone off guard" means to surprise someone by doing something that he or she was not
expecting and makes the person feel confused or uncertain.

To keep an eye on the ball

Imagine this: You have stepped out on the stadium with the baseball bat in
your hand. Thousands of people are cheering your name but, in your head,
you are thinking about one thing: You need to keep your eye on the ball.
To keep an eye on the ball means to focus on your task or goal closely. It can
also be used to encourage someone to pay attention or to watch out and
maintain a high level of alertness.
 For example:

 “When it comes to business negotiations, you really need to keep an eye

on the ball.”
Word of mouth
Word of mouth refers to the spread of information verbally. In regards to
business, it usually refers to people telling other people about your business,
product or service.
Note that this expression is commonly used to talk positively about something.
If someone has a good experience with your product, then they may tell their
friend about it, and that friend might tell another friend and so on—and before
long, everyone is talking about your product! This is known as word-of-mouth
marketing.
 For example:

 “Hi, if you don’t mind me asking, how did you find out about our shop?”
“I heard about it through word of mouth, everybody kept telling me how
great your products are!”
To touch base
This is another phrase that comes from a sport. In baseball, the bases are
where the batter runs to after striking the ball. In business English, to touch
base means to briefly connect with or re-contact someone.
This form of contact is often short and is used to check in with somebody. For
example, if you are working with a colleague on a project, you can touch
base with them about their progress, or about a part of the project that you are
waiting for them to finish.
You will find that this expression is quite often used in emails.
For example:

 “Hi Sarah, I just wanted to touch base with you to see if we’re still
scheduled to complete the first phase of the project by next Monday.”

 ahead of the pack

To be "ahead of the pack" means to be better or more If we

successful than the competition. want

 to stay

ahead

of the

pack,

we're

going

to

have

to

work

hard

and

contin

ue to

innova

te.

backroom deal A

"backroom I think

deal" is an they got

agreement the

or decision govern

that is ment

made contract
 without the because

public of a

knowing backroo

about it. m deal.

change of pace "A change of pace" is something different from a

normal routine or schedule.

Pensive- thinking in a quiet way, often with a serious expression on your face.

Preoccupied- thinking or worrying about something too much

She was very preoccupied recently because her mother has been very ill.
Lethargic/ Sluggish -having little energy, not wanting to do anything.
The patient was weak and lethargy.

1. Stock up
To get a large
2. Back up
3. Be into/focus in very much ===== interest in cut out
4. Fall through
5. End up
1. “A developed country is not a place where the poor have cars. Its where the rich use public
transportation.”
2. Every problem is a gift without problems we would not grow.
3. Success usually comes to those who are too busy to be looking for it.

1. Work out
2. Work off
3. Fall behind
4. Slim down
5. Take up
6. Try out for
7. Knock out
8. Catch up
9. Pass out
10. Bulk up
Put down

2. Pay off

3. Pay back

4. Dip into

5. Cut back

6. Shop around

7. Compliment

8. Complement

9. Heads up

10. Stock up

11. Back up

12. Fall through

13. Be into

14. End up

15. Get off track/ Get back on track

16. In full swing

17. to bank on

18. to brush on