Business English Vocabulary – Units 1-5

A comprehensive set of vocabulary flashcards covering key business English terms from Units 1-5, including economics, marketing, negotiation, finance, and business correspondence.

Interest rate

The cost of borrowing money

Exchange rate

The price at which one currency can buy another.

Inflation rate

The general increase in prices over time.

Labor force

All the people who are working or available to work.

Tax incentives

Low or reduced taxes offered to encourage business activity.

Government bureaucracy

The administrative system of government departments, often seen as complex.

GDP (Gross Domestic Product)

The total value of goods and services produced in a country.

Unemployment rate

The percentage of the labor force without a job.

Foreign investment

Money invested in a country by individuals or firms from overseas.

Balance of trade

The difference in value between a country’s imports and exports.

Reputation

The public’s opinion or esteem of a person or organization.

Damp

Slightly wet or humid.

Drizzling

Raining lightly in very small drops.

Hazy

Misty or slightly obscured atmosphere.

Mild

Moderate; neither very hot nor very cold.

Overcast

Completely covered with clouds; dull sky.

Roasting

Extremely hot weather.

End user

The final consumer of a product or service.

Label

A tag or brand name attached to a product.

Marketing mix

It consists of “the four Ps” : providing the customer with the right product at the right price, presented in the most attractive way (promotion) and available in the easiest way (place)

Distribution

The process of getting products to the point of sales

Hire purchase

A system of paying for goods in instalments.

Design place

Điểm thuê

Place

The point of sale or distribution channel.

Promotion

Activities that raise awareness or boost sales of a product.

Physical product

A tangible good.

Credit facilities

The possibility of paying for a product over an extended period

Product line

A group of related products marketed by a company.

Brand loyalty

The tendency to always buy a particular brand

Brand image

The ideas and beliefs consumers hold about a brand.

Brand stretching

Using an existing brand name on a new product category.

Brand awareness

How familiar consumers are with a brand.

Brand name

The name given to a product by the company that make it

Product launch

The introduction of a new product to the market.

Product lifecycle

The length of time people continue to buy a product

Product range

The set of products made by a company

Product placement

Promotion where products appear in films or TV shows.

Product endorsement

The use of a well - known person to advertise products

Warranty

A manufacturer’s promise to repair or replace faulty goods.

Brand-switcher

A consumer who buys from various competing brands.

Niche (market)

A small, specialized but profitable market segment.

Profitability

The extent to which an activity yields financial gain.

Multi-brand strategy

manufacturers market various products under different brand names

Product mix

A company’s items, brands and products constitute its product mix

Line-stretching

length a product line by moving either up-market or down-market,…making items of higher or lower quality

Line-filling

Adding futher items to the existing product line

Segment = Slice

A distinct part of a market with similar customers.

Poll = Survey

An opinion survey of a sample group.

Finding = Results

A result obtained from research.

Typical = Representative

Representative; characteristic of a group.

Perceive = See

To see, understand or interpret something.

Dustbin survey

A researcher regularly visits someone’s home and looks at the labels of all the products that a household has bought or used recently

Focus group

A researcher encourages a group of consumers to discuss their feelings and attitudes towards different products. The discussion is secretly observed and often filmed

Street survey questionaire

A researcher interviews passers-by and asks them a list of carefully chosen questions.

Blind testing

Selected volunteers are given different objects to examine or samples of food or drink to taste and compare. The identity or brand of the products is kept a secret.

Postal survey

A questionnaire sent and returned by mail.

Quantitative

Relating to numerical measurement or data.

Qualitative

Relating to descriptions or non-numerical data.

Any other business

often the last item in a meeting, when participants after a meeting

Apologies for absence

often the first meeting, concerning people who cannot be present

Compromise

A way of reaching agreement in which each side concedes or gives up something it wants

Consensus

the situation in which most or all of the people at a agree about something

Digress

to move off the subject and start talking about something else

Minutes

a written report distributed to participants after a meeting

Customer-supplier negotiations

Talks between a buyer and seller to agree terms.

Merger or takeover negotiations

Discussions to combine or acquire companies.

Wage negotiations

Talks aimed at agreeing pay levels.

Trade negotiations

Discussions on trade terms between organizations or countries.

Contract disputes

Disagreements over the terms of a contract.

Labor disputes

Conflicts between employers and employees.

Trade disputes

Conflicts concerning trading practices or tariffs.

Bulk purchase

Buying goods in large quantities.

Penalty clause

Contract term specifying a punishment for breach.

Haggle / Bargain

To negotiate price or terms.

Concession

Something which is accepted or given up by one side in order to end a disagreement

Counter-proposal

An offer made in response to another offer.

Deal point

An individual item or element in a negotiation.

Leave something hanging

To delay making a decision on an issue.

Parameters

Fixed limits within which something must occur.

Scenario

A description of a possible future situation.

Set something aside

To temporarily ignore or not think about a particular fact

Tip

A helpful piece of advice or information.

Trade-off

A exchange involving giving up one thing to get something else

Articulate

To express ideas clearly and effectively in speech or writting

Inquisitive

Tending to ask questions: having a desire to know or learn more

Suffice

To be or provide as much as it needed

Unscrupulous

Not honest or fail, illegal

Co-operative negotiation (win-win)

Style of negotiation in which the participants try not to harm each other’s interest and they both make concessions in order to maintain a good long-term relationship.

Competitive negotiation (win-lose)

Style of negotiation in which the parties are opponents, the language may become hostile and threatening and suitable for a one-off contract

Personnel

People who work for a particular company or organization

Impersonal

Not relating to or influenced by personal feelings

Hostile

Unfriendly; antagonistic.

Linguistic

Relating to language or linguistics.

Small talk

Light informal conversation to break the ice.

Dividend

A part of the profits of a company paid to the owners of shares

Forecast

a description of what is likely to happen in the future

Earnings per share

a company’s profits divided by the number of its shares

Shares

Equal parts into which the capital or ownership of a company is divided

Stock market

a place where the company shares are bought and sold

Bull market

a period of time in financial markets when prices trend upward