Posts belonging to Category 'business'

Business English word of the day: to embezzle

to embezzle : détourner (fonds) embezzlement : détournement de fonds My boss was fired last week because he was caught embezzling the company’s finances. Corrupt politicians are often involved in embezzlement scandals. This strange word actually has its origins in Old French. The word was ‘bésillier’, meaning to ‘torment’ or ‘destroy’. The anglo-saxon prefix ‘em’ [...]

Exchanging personal information

Write down the following information: telephone number: man’s e-mail address: make and model of car: car’s registration number: Woman’s e-mail address:

The Role of Business in Tomorrow’s Society (documentaire)

You can download a worksheet for this video here. Subscribers only. Use the password that you received in your welcome e-mail. Please don’t hesitate to leave your comments on this video. I read them all!

Business English word of the day: Overtime

overtime : heures supplémentaires You can say ‘to do overtime’ or ‘to work overtime’ Examples: “I won’t be home till late tonight, I have to do overtime” “It’s a great job, nine to five and no overtime!” “Work more to earn more is a good idea in principle, but if your employer won’t give you [...]

business conversation: the boss is looking for you!

Here is a fairly typical conversation between two colleagues. Can you name the tenses used? Where (1) have you been? (2) I’ve been looking for you everywhere! Oh (3)I just popped out to get some lunch. Well, (4) I was looking for you because (5)the boss wants to see you this afternoon Do you know [...]

Business English: PLC

you see, this company is a P L C. That stands for Public Limited Company. It’s called a public company because anyone can buy shares in it. Limited means that its liability is limited. Shares are bought and sold at the stock exchange. If you want to buy shares in a company you need the [...]

Business English: Project management

Business English word of the day: shareholder

shareholder : actionnaire A shareholder is someone who owns shares in a company. Mr.Jones has become a major shareholder in the company, and is demanding changes in the way the company is run At the annual general meeting (AGM) there were a lot of complaints from the smaller shareholders about not being consulted when it [...]

What are they talking about? No. 6

a. phone call b. letter c. report d. form Nicky: Have you finished writing your _________ for the boss? Sergei: Not yet, I made a draft yesterday, but it’s not ready to be submitted. Nicky: Well, it’s probably not that urgent anyway, once he has read it it will be filed away with thousands of [...]

What are they talking about? No. 5

a. computer file b. printer c. email d. photograph Ryan: Help! I can’t find that ________ anymore, it seems to have disappeared! Marianne: Don’t panic, maybe you just forgot where you saved it. Ryan: Well the last time I opened it, it was on my desktop Marianne: And you haven’t modified it since then? Ryan: [...]

What are they talking about? No.4

a. form b. report c. letter d. email Stan: Have you joined the health club yet? Mavis: No, I still have the _______ but I haven’t got around to filling it in. Stan: Well, when you do, sign it and make a copy of it, they often get lost. Mavis: Good idea, I’ll send it [...]

What are they talking about? No. 3

a. report b. form c. book d. letter Lucy: Did you finish writing your __________ ? George: Yes, I’m going to send it later, but I don’t have an envelope. Could you get me one when you go to town? Lucy: No problem. do you want me to address it and post it? George: Oh [...]

what are they talking about? No.2

a. computer b. phone call c. photocopier d. email Olivia: I need to call a technician, my ___________ won’t shut down. Jack: Really? does it often crash like that? Olivia: No, it’s the first time. But when this happens, I can’t even try to reboot it. Jack: Well the easiest way to restart is to [...]

What are they talking about? No.1

Read the following conversation and choose the right word to fill the gap. Notice carefully the verbs that are used – they all collocate strongly with one of the following: a. letter b. email c. computer d. report Practice acting out the dialogue. Zak: Did you check your ________? I sent you something yesterday. Ruby: [...]

Conversation questions: Money

Discuss these questions: 1.What is rich? Are you rich? How much do you need to be rich? 2.What do you spend your money on? 3.What would you like to buy but can’t afford? 4.Who is responsible for the current recession? 5.What would you do if you won 100 million Euros? 6.finish the proverb: “Money can’t [...]