Business English: 250 Words and Phrases

This set contains key phrasal verbs, idioms, adjectives, and business terms extracted from Denys Dubenko's Business English guide.

call off

to cancel

come up with

to think of or invent an idea

follow up

to continue or check on a process

look into

to investigate or study

run through

to quickly review or illustrate

turn down

to reject or refuse

get across

to clearly communicate an idea

set up

to arrange or organize

work out

to solve a problem

put forward

to propose or suggest

lay out

to present a plan or information

back up

to support or confirm

bring in

to involve an expert or introduce into action

go over

to review or check

get through

to overcome or complete

sort out

to solve or settle

move forward

to move ahead or implement

point out

to indicate a problem

get back to

to return with an answer

write up

to prepare in writing or write a report

bring down

to reduce costs

keep up with

to stay up to date with trends

check in

to check the state of affairs or give a report

go ahead

to start work

fill out

to fill in a form

hand in

to submit or hand in work or an application

keep to

to stick to deadlines

follow through

to complete to the end

step up

to take on more responsibility

close down

to close a business

pull out

to withdraw from a deal

put off

to postpone for later

settle on

to stop at a specific decision

wrap up

to finish or conclude

step down

to resign from a position

take over

to take control of or absorb

hand over

to transfer responsibility

keep up

to maintain a specific pace or level of productivity

deal with

to handle or deal with a situation

carry out

to perform or execute

think over

to weigh or think about a decision

look forward to

to expect with anticipation

learn the ropes

to master the basics or learn the business

that won’t cut it

this will not work or be sufficient

the ball is in your court

it is your turn to make a decision

behind the scenes

at a level that is not visible to others

on the same page

to be on the same wavelength or in agreement

sleep on it

to postpone a decision until the next day to think it over

call it a day

to finish working for the day

in a nutshell

briefly speaking

it’s a long shot

something very unlikely or almost unrealistic

touch base

to contact or communicate for clarification

kill two birds with one stone

to achieve two goals at once

let’s table it

to set an issue aside for later

in the same boat

to be in a similar situation as part of the same team

in the bag

absolutely secured or guaranteed

move the needle

to significantly change a situation or move a matter forward

lots of moving parts

a complex matter with many different aspects

get your ducks in a row

to get organized and put things in order

put out fires

to solve urgent or immediate problems

cut corners

to save time or money by doing something poorly or breaking standards

on a shoestring

with a minimum budget

cut to the chase

to get straight to the point

bend over backwards

to do everything possible with extra effort

win-win situation

a mutually beneficial situation for both sides

cool as a cucumber

calm and unflappable

go back to the drawing board

to start everything over from the beginning

think outside the box

to think unconventionally or creatively

the elephant in the room

an obvious problem that everyone ignores

articulate

eloquent and well-spoken

assertive

self-confident and persistent

collaborative

oriented toward cooperation

meticulous

scrupulous and very attentive to detail

tech-savvy

technically proficient and educated in technology

visionary

far-sighted as one who creates a vision of the future

revenue

total income

profit

financial gain or profit

asset

something of value owned by a company

liability

a financial obligation or debt (passive)

ROI (return on investment)

a measure of the profitability of investments

lead generation

the process of attracting potential customers

onboarding

the process of integrating or adapting a new employee

probation

a trial period for an employee

upsell

an additional sale of a more expensive product

pipeline

a sales funnel

UX (user experience)

overall user experience with a product

UI (user interface)

the visual elements enabling interaction with a product

wireframe

the framework or skeleton of a future interface

bank

a financial institution or the side of a river

fair

a marketplace/exhibition or being just and honest

fine

a monetary penalty or something delicate and thin