Speak Business English Like an American Lesson 27 Idioms and Expressions Test

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Congratulations - you have completed Speak Business English Like an American Lesson 27 Idioms and Expressions Test. You scored %%SCORE%% out of %%TOTAL%%. Your performance has been rated as %%RATING%%

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Question 1

Fill in the blanks, using the following idioms.

Liz is in a difficult position. Her boss has told her to (1) _____ since the company is in financial trouble. Liz only has three em ployees: Brian, Rachel, and Pam. Brian and Rachel are doing great work, so she can't afford to (2) _____ . Pam isn't doing so well. In fact, over the past year her (3) _____ . It's true that Pam helped (4) _____ and has been a very loyal employee over the past 10 years. Unfortunately, she's no longer (5) _____ . Liz thinks Pam has simply worked too hard and is now(6) _____ . Liz likes Pam, and would prefer not to fire her. But (7) _____ . Liz hopes there will be (8) _____ after she tells Pam the bad news.

A	at the top of her game
B	work has really slipped
C	no hard feelings
D	reduce headcount

Question 2

A	let them go
B	burned out
C	reduce headcount
D	her hands are tied

Question 3

A	work has really slipped
B	build the company from the ground up
C	no hard feelings
D	work has really slipped

Question 4

A	at the top of her game
B	burned out
C	build the company from the 8. no hard feelings ground up
D	reduce headcount

Question 5

A	at the top of her game
B	let them go
C	her hands are tied
D	work has really slipped

Question 6

A	let them go
B	reduce headcount
C	at the top of her game
D	burned out

Question 7

A	work has really slipped
B	her hands are tied
C	burned out
D	build the company from the ground up

Question 8

A	let them go
B	no hard feelings
C	reduce headcount
D	burned out

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LESSON 27 – Firing Somebody

FIRING SOMEBODY

Kurt has the difficult task of firing Dan. Dan s been with the company since the beginning and is a friend of Kurt s. Dan is surprised and upset with the news.

Kurt: Dan, your work has slipped. You’ve been here for 15 years, and I think you’re just burned out.

Dan: What are you talking about? I’m at the top of my game. I just managed our biggest project in years.

Kurt: You can’t take credit for that. You didn’t lift a finger on that project. You were on vacation in Hawaii for three weeks while Steve and Sally were doing all the work.

Dan: I’m not good at reading between the lines. Please just cut to the chase. What are you trying to say?

Kurt: Dan, Swift Shoes is downsizing. This is really difficult, but we’re going to have to let you go.

Dan: What? I helped build this company from the ground up! You can’t fire me now.

Kurt: I don’t want to, but my hands are tied. Our president has told me to reduce headcount by 50 percent.

Dan: I thought you and I were friends, but when push comes to shove, I guess our friendship isn’t worth anything.

Kurt: Of course we’re still friends, but business is business.

Dan: I don’t agree with that. I would never fire a friend….after all those times Kathleen and I invited you and Donna to dinner at our home!

Kurt: Dan, I want you to leave Swift Shoes on friendly terms. No hard feelings. To soften the blow, we’re going to give you a generous severance package.

IDIOMS

one’s work has slipped

→ one’s performance has gotten worse; one is not doing one’s job properly

EXAMPLE: What’s going on with Jeremy? He used to be very good at his job, but recently his work has slipped.

(to be) burned out

→ to be extremely tired; to lose effectiveness because of doing a job for too long

EXAMPLE: After working 80-hour weeks at the investment bank for many years, Jim was burned out.

(to be) at the top of one’s game

→ to be performing at the top of one’s abilities; to be performing very well

EXAMPLE: Last year, Ethan brought in over $5 million in new business to the agency. He’s at the top of his game.

(to) take credit for something

→ to claim recognition for something

EXAMPLE: Joan came up with the idea of selling the company’s products at Costco, but her boss took the credit for it.

(to) not lift a finger

→ to not help at all; to do nothing

EXAMPLE: While everybody else was working hard to finish the project, Tim was chatting with his friend and didn’t lift a finger.

(to) read between the lines

→ to understand unclear or indirect communication; to interpret something from hints or suggestions

EXAMPLE: Your boss told you to take a very long vacation? Read between the lines: he’s suggesting you leave the company!

ORIGIN: This expression comes from the days when people would send secret messages. When treated with a special substance like lemon juice, a secret message would appear between the lines of an ordinary looking letter. Therefore, when told to “read between the lines,” you should look for the hidden meaning.

(to) cut to the chase

→ to get to the point; to tell the most important part of the story

EXAMPLE: I don’t have time to listen to a long explanation of why you didn’t finish this project on time. Please cut to the chase.

ORIGIN: In action films, the “chase” refers to most exciting part, when the drama is at a high point. Some people may want the movie to get to this exciting part (in other words, cut to it) as soon as possible.

(to) let someone go

→ to fire someone

EXAMPLE: Mepstein Industries let their accountant go after he made a major mistake calculating the company’s tax bill.

(to) build something from the ground up

→ to develop a company, a business, or a department from its beginnings; to build a successful operation from scratch

EXAMPLE: Autumn Moon Vineyards doesn’t yet have a marketing department. They’re going to have to build one from the ground up.

my hands are tied

→ there’s nothing I can do; I’m stuck; I have no alternatives

EXAMPLE: I don’t approve of the direction my company is moving in, but my boss doesn’t want to listen to my opinion. My hands are tied.

(to) reduce headcount

→ to lay off or fire workers

EXAMPLE: When Lucent’s business was in trouble, they announced they would reduce headcount by at least 10,000 employees.

NOTE: “Headcount” is the number of people who work at an organization. Many companies do not like to say that they are “laying people off’ as it can sound cold and insensitive. After all, people are involved. “Reducing headcount” gets around this problem. It sounds less personal and more scientific.

SYNONYM: to downsize

when push comes to shove

→ when really tested; when it really counts; when there’s no more time left to hesitate or think about what action to take

EXAMPLE: Many people say they are worried about the environment, but when push comes to shove, how many people are willing to pay extra for environmentally-friendly products?

SYNONYM: when you come right down to it