Category Archives: Business Idioms

BEP 74 ADV (Transcript & Exercises) – Idioms: Business is War (Part 2)

During the first business ESL podcast in this series, we studied many such war and military related idioms. We learned the meaning of “taking flak,” “reinforcing one’s position,” “laying low,” “making a move” and many others. In this podcast, we will continue exploring useful war idioms.

The dialog picks up where we left off at the Luminex management meeting. Jane has just explained that they need to think “strategically.” He explains that this means “laying low,” by which he means waiting to take action until the economy improves.

As you listen, pay attention to the war idioms Jane and her colleagues use. You may not understand them the first time. After you hear the debrief, go back and listen again, then things should be much clearer.

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Study Notes

Phrases & Practice
BEP 74 ADV – Idioms: Business is War 2 – Quiz

BEP 74 ADV – Idioms: Business is War 2 – Gap-fill

BEP 74 ADV – Idioms: Business is War 2 – Dialog & Vocabulary

BEP 74 ADV – Idioms: Business is War 2 – Language 1

BEP 74 ADV – Idioms: Business is War 2 – Language 2

BEP 74 ADV – Idioms: Business is War 2 – Language 3

BEP 74 ADV – Idioms: Business is War 2 – Flashcards


Listening Questions: BEP 74 ADV – Idioms: Business is War (Part 2)

1) What does Jane mean when she says their competitor, Meyers, is its own worst enemy?

2) The speakers describe their new strategy as an “ambush” that will “surround” Meyers. Why do they say this? What is the strategy?

BEP 73 ADV (Transcript & Exercises) – Idioms: Business is War (Part 1)

Business and war. War and business. It’s no accident that many business strategies and management techniques were first developed in the military. Actually, it’s quite natural that we think about business competition in terms of war. Companies fight each other for market share. We strategize about how to win the battle. You try to attack my market position, and I defend it. Business is full of such war idioms. Though it’s not the only way we think about business, it is certainly the main way we talk about it. Therefore, to communicate effectively in a business environment, we need to learn these war idioms.

That’s what we’ll be doing in this two-part series. In today’s dialog, the management at Luminex, a producer of LCD TVs, is discussing how to respond to a attack on their market position by a competitor, Meyers. Traditionally, Meyers has been strong in the premium (high value) market and Luminex has been strong in the mid-range market. Recently, however, Meyers has tried to take mid-range market share from Luminex.

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Study Notes

Phrases & Practice
BEP 73 ADV – Idioms: Business is War 1 – Quiz

BEP 73 ADV – Idioms: Business is War 1 – Gap-fill

BEP 73 ADV – Idioms: Business is War 1 – Dialog & Vocabulary

BEP 73 ADV – Idioms: Business is War 1 – Language 1

BEP 73 ADV – Idioms: Business is War 1 – Language 2

BEP 73 ADV – Idioms: Business is War 1 – Language 3

BEP 73 ADV – Idioms: Business is War 1 – Flashcards


Listening Questions: BEP 73 ADV – Idioms: Business is War (Part 1)

1) The first two speakers talk about “always being on the defensive” and “taking way too much flak.” What do they mean and what do they propose doing?

2) How does Jane’s point of view differ from the first two speakers?

BEP 61 PP (Transcript & Actvities): American Sports Idioms in a Business Meeting

This is the first in a series of Business English Practice Pods that review and extend the language that is covered in the regular podcast. Practice pod dialogs will revise key language but in different situations. Also, they give you more opportunities to practice what you’ve learned.

We’ll hear several phrases from Sports Idioms 1 & 2, plus a few new ones, being used in a new context – a business meeting.

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BEP 61 Study Notes
BEP 61 PP – Sports Idioms in Business – Quiz

BEP 61 PP – Sports Idioms in Business – Gap-fill

BEP 61 PP – Sports Idioms in Business – Language 1

BEP 61 PP – Sports Idioms in Business – Language 2

BEP 61 PP – Sports Idioms in Business – Flashcards

BEP 57 & 58 (Transcript & Activities) – Water Cooler Chitchat: Sports Idioms

The idiomatic expressions we feature in Sports Idioms 1 & 2 relate to popular sports in the USA, particularly baseball and American football. In business, competition is often understood in terms of athletic competition. That’s why there are so many sports idioms in business English.

You can also check out the new practice pod on sports idioms (BEP 61) to hear these idioms being used in a different context – a business meeting.

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BEP 57 Study Notes

BEP 57 PhraseCast
BEP 57 & 58: Sports Idioms – Quiz

BEP 57 & 58: Sports Idioms – Gap-fill


BEP 58 Study Notes

BEP 58 PhraseCast
BEP 57 & 58: Sports Idioms – Language 1

BEP 57 & 58: Sports Idioms – Language 2

BEP 57 & 58: Sports Idioms – Language 3


Listening Quiz (Click a question to see the answer):

BEP 57 – Sports Idioms 1

1) Do Jan and Jen think Accent’s takeover of TelStar was a good idea?

2) Why was there a delay in the takeover?

BEP 58 – Sports Idioms 2

1) Who is McConnel and what do Jan and Jen think of him?

2) What do Jen and Jan say about Accent’s future in American market?