Welcome back to Business English Pod for our final lesson on 商務英語慣用語 related to food.

Over the past couple of weeks, we’ve looked at a lot of different 英語慣用語 connected to food. It should be no surprise that so many expressions are related to eating and drinking. 畢竟, we do it three times a day, or more. Food is not just a necessity, it’s a big part of life and culture.

When you’re looking at idioms, it’s important to remember that they are fixed expressions where the words don’t have a literal meaning. So when you hear that someone is “in a pickle,” you have to understand that there’s no actual pickle. It just means that someone’s in a difficult situation. You have to figure it out from the context, because there’s not really an obvious connection between pickles and difficult situations.

在本課中, we’ll rejoin a conversation between three colleagues. Jessie has been trying to convince Luke and Ben to join her in starting a business together. 今天, we’ll hear them talking about the possible challenges of running their own business.

聽力問題

1. What example does Ben give of a possibly difficult business situation?
2. What does Jessie say is one important benefit of running your own business?
3. According to Jessie, what is necessary for people to have a good business partnership?

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歡迎回到 商務英語播客! In today’s lesson we’re going to take another look at 英語慣用語 related to food.

What do you think when someone says that another person is “out to lunch?” 當然, it might mean that the person is actually out of the office, at a restaurant, eating a nice sandwich. But it might have nothing to do with actually eating. “Out to lunch” can mean acting crazy, not paying attention, or not understanding reality. 換句話說, “out to lunch” is an English idiom.

An idiom is any expression where one thing actually means something else, like when “out to lunch” means crazy. English has a huge variety of idioms for every situation. And many of those idioms are related to food. Some are related to meals, like “to put food on the table” 和 “to sing for your supper.” And others are related to specific foods, like “cool as a cucumber” 和 “small potatoes.” Learning idioms like these is a great way to improve your English.

在今天的課程中, we’ll continue listening to a conversation among three colleagues. Jessie has just told Luke and Ben about her idea to start a business. She wants them to consider joining her in the new venture. 在他們的討論中, they use many English idioms related to food.

聽力問題

1. After saying he likes Jessie’s idea, what does Ben say he’s concerned about?
2. How does Luke feel about managing people?
3. What does Jessie think about the fact that they are always talking about how bad their workplace is?

Download: Podcast MP3

歡迎回到商務英語播客今天的課程 商務英語慣用語 related to food.

Food is an important part of life and culture. And even when we’re not eating, or talking about food, it slips into our conversation in the form of idioms. What do I mean when I say “idiom?” I mean special expressions where one thing actually means another. 例如, we have the idiom “to go bananas,” which has nothing at all to do with bananas. It means “to go crazy.”

English has idioms that come from specific foods, like bananas, butter, bacon, and bread. 我們還有 英語慣用語 that come from meals or use the word “food” itself. Some of these idioms describe people and activities, while others describe situations, relationships, and ideas. Learning how to use these idioms can really help “spice up” your conversation in English.

在今天的課程中, we’ll hear a conversation among three coworkers: Jessie, Luke, and Ben. They are discussing their general work situation and Jessie’s idea to start her own company. 在他們的討論中, they use many useful idioms related to food.

聽力問題

1. How did Ben feel about working with Ian?
2. Why does Luke say he is not willing to complain to Ian about his approach to work?
3. What does Luke say Jessie is always stressed out about?

Download: Podcast MP3