Dianacee  +  164435 Wed, 30 Nov 05 04:07 AM I'm working on a list of slang terms one hears in AmE and/or BrE business situations whose meanings aren't apparent by looking up individual words in the dictionary. What follows is what I've got so far. Can anyone add to this list? stay on your toes go for the gold sit on your butt / sit on your bum just warming a seat golden handshake golden parachute use your head use some elbow grease reach for the stars use your noggin show him/her the door on the tip of the tongue off the top of the head fly by the seat of the pants wing it fake it get lost / tell him or her to get lost (something or someone) didn't go over (something or someone) went over (something or someone) bombed fall on the face egg on the face hit the target fell short get one's knickers in a twist the squeaky wheel gets the grease Dianacee Joined on Tue, Sep 13 2005 New Member 22

	Mister Micawber  +  164490 Wed, 30 Nov 05 08:06 AM Bad Business Slang Let’s give him a plastic cup and see what he fills it with. I’d like to chain that question to the radiator for a few months. We need to stop worrying about the low hanging fruit and start going after the injured pack animals. We’ll look up that skirt when we come to it. This organization is all chiefs and no plagues. I’d like to double-tap that issue to be sure. We’re still feeling our way around the meat locker on that one. Mister Micawber Joined on Wed, Aug 4 2004 Yokohama Veteran Member 30,501 'The question is,' said Humpty Dumpty, 'which is to be master-- that's all.'

	CalifJim  +  164493 Wed, 30 Nov 05 08:11 AM Not all the expressions in your list are restricted to a business context, of course. get the pink slip at the end of the day a power play build an empire go paperless feed the dragon kick someone upstairs be on special assignment glass ceiling customer focus customer centric run it up the flagpole (and see who salutes) get buy-in bureaucratic nightmare top of the line managerese human resources exception pay low-hanging fruit  (Thanks for reminding me, Mr. M.) office politics the corner office CalifJim Joined on Mon, Aug 2 2004 California Veteran Member 22,128 "There are no facts, only interpretations" - Nietzsche

	Dianacee  +  164649 Wed, 30 Nov 05 03:24 PM  CalifJim wrote: Not all the expressions in your list are restricted to a business context, of course. You're absolutely right! We hear / use those expressions in many different situations but since most of my students are studying 'Business English' I thought it would be useful to cobble together a list of the ones we do use also in business contexts. It's amazing how many times I'm asked what something like these expressions mean and then students go on to explain that these instances are the point when they lose the gist in meetings, business conversations or teleconferences because their minds became preoccupied with such an unfamiliar (odd) string of words. I thought a list, with explanations of the terms, might be useful for others besides my own students. PS - I think I might have chosen a better thread title for this. Dianacee Conversations, Business English

	CalifJim  +  164823 Thu, 01 Dec 05 04:21 AM lose the gist ... because their minds became preoccupied with such an unfamiliar ... string of words I know the feeling very well.  It has happened to me whenever I have tried to learn another language. It's very easy for me to put myself in their shoes.  CalifJim

	Delmobile  +  480843 Sat, 23 Feb 08 11:27 PM  get into a p*ssing contest (rude) And the tables, which I've mentioned here before: what do they bring to the table, we're offering you a seat at the table, etc.   This is a great idea! It would make a cute little book.  Maybe "cute" is the wrong word. Delmobile Joined on Wed, Jan 2 2008 Contributing Member 1,017

	Delmobile  +  481218 Mon, 25 Feb 08 02:38 AM Neighbor used one this afternoon & I saved it for you: "get off the dime," to make a decision.   http://www.answers.com/topic/get-off-the-dime  Delmobile

	Grammar Geek  +  481224 Mon, 25 Feb 08 03:11 AM Oh my goodness. I'm going to try to interject a few of Mr. M's at work and see what happens. It was like "MadLibs for business jargon" I think you may want to differentiate between absurd business jargon that makes us all roll our eyes (like "we're engaged in our visioning process to see how we can leverage our  human capital for a synergistic solution") and idioms that are used in the business world that may require a bit of an explanation. On the other hand, maybe the only difference between the two types is that the second set has been around longer and we all rolled our eyes when they first came out too. A lot come from sports and war. Grammar Geek Joined on Tue, Jan 10 2006 Veteran Member 19,506 Barbara, who answers in American English. My housekeeping skills attest to the truth of the second law of thermodynamics: Left to themselves, things get more and more random! Idioms, Difference Between