1
“I’m sorry, could you say that again? I didn’t quite ____________ what you said.”
“I’m sorry, could you say that again? I didn’t quite catch what you said.”
To catch something means to hear something.
“For me, one of the _______ takeaways from the meeting is the need for more staff.”
“For me, one of the major takeaways from the meeting is the need for more staff.”
Major takeaways: the most important ideas, facts, or lessons to be remembered from a project, meeting, or event
“After so much disagreement with the property owners, we ______ up backing out of the leasing deal.”
“After so much disagreement with the property owners, we ended up backing out of the leasing deal.”
To end up: to eventually do or be something because of what has happened
“When our head programmer got sick, it set our project ______ by about two weeks.”
“When our head programmer got sick, it set our project back by about two weeks.”
To set back: to delay progress on something
“Yes, you deserve a raise Gordon, but 12% is really pushing it. How about 6%?”
To push it: to do something risky or ask for too much
“I’m sorry – she’s not in right now. Is it all right if I ask you to ________/ put you on hold?”
“I’m sorry – she’s not in right now. Is it all right if I ask you to hold/ put you on hold?”
(To put someone on) hold / to hold: To wait on the telephone line.
“The TAD2000 is just what we were _______ for in a multifunction office printer.”
“The TAD2000 is just what we were looking for in a multifunction office printer.”
Just what someone is looking for: exactly what is wanted or asked for
“The client agreed to most of our terms, but price was a huge ________ point.”
“The client agreed to most of our terms, but price was a huge sticking point.”
Sticking point: a point of disagreement that stops discussion or negotiation
“All right everyone, before you go, let me just r_________ how important it is that we find ways to deal with declining sales.”
“All right everyone, before you go, let me just reiterate how important it is that we find ways to deal with declining sales.”
To reiterate: to state something again, especially for emphasis
“We understand you need a bit more time to pay, but we’re going to have to draw the line at 90 days.”
To draw the line: to set a limit to what you will accept
“Yes, John, that’s fine – please put him right ____________.”
“Yes, John, that’s fine – please put him right through.”
To put somebody through: To transfer a call to someone.
“Ladies and gentlemen, we are _________ delays because of fog so please be patient and we’ll get this flight going as soon as possible.”
“Ladies and gentlemen, we are experiencing delays because of fog so please be patient and we’ll get this flight going as soon as possible.”
To experience delays: to have things happen later or more slowly than expected
“The company psychologist helped Todd work ________ his anxiety about his work performance.”
“The company psychologist helped Todd work through his anxiety about his work performance.”
To work through: to deal with or solve a problem through discussion and consideration
“It looked like we were close to a deal, but then talks got bogged down in arguments over intellectual property.”
To get bogged down: to get slowed down or lack progress
“We’ve acted too nice for too long; it’s time to call our lawyers and play hardball with these guys.”
To play hardball: to act strongly or aggressively in negotiation
“I know we usually design our brochures in-house, but I think we should ___ a different way on them this time.”
“I know we usually design our brochures in-house, but I think we should go a different way on them this time.”
To go a certain way on something: to choose an option or approach to a situation or problem
“Plan to arrive early for your presentation, just in case there are ________ with traffic or technology.”
“Plan to arrive early for your presentation, just in case there are hiccups with traffic or technology.”
Hiccups: small problems or delays
“Our lawyer told us things might not _____ out well in court if we refuse their offer of a settlement.”
“Our lawyer told us things might not play out well in court if we refuse their offer of a settlement.”
To play out: to end or develop in a certain way
“Our biggest bone of contention with Point Logistics is slow delivery times, so unless they can improve that we’ll find a new distributor.”
Bone of contention: a specific point that people disagree or argue about
“City officials finally caved in to our demands for a policy change when it was clear the public supported our position.”
To cave in (to demands): to agree to give someone what they want or ask for
“Tell me Lorne, what did you have in ____ for the big project launch this fall?”
“Tell me Lorne, what did you have in mind for the big project launch this fall?”
To have in mind: to be thinking of or considering something
“Okay folks, let’s not get ________ down with personal arguments here and just focus on how to improve things for next time.”
“Okay folks, let’s not get bogged down with personal arguments here and just focus on how to improve things for next time.”
To get bogged down: to get stuck on or involved with something that slows down a process
“On the advice of their lawyers, GoMax _____ out of the proposed partnership with Realty World.”
“On the advice of their lawyers, GoMax backed out of the proposed partnership with Realty World.”
To back out: to remove yourself from a promise, commitment, or obligation
“My presentation went pretty well until the CTO threw me a curve ball with a tough technical question I couldn’t answer.”
To throw someone a curve ball: to ask for or do something surprising that causes problems
“If you’re in no rush to sell the building, why don’t you just bide your time and wait for a buyer who will agree to your price?”
To bide your time: to wait patiently for something to happen