across the board

- including everyone or everything

The computer company decided to give the workers an across-the-board increase in their salary.

(to sell something) at a loss

- (to sell something) and lose money

We were forced to sell the computers at a loss.

to bail a company out

- to help or rescue a company with financial problems

The government decided to bail out the bank in order to maintain stability in the economy.

a ball park figure/estimate

- a rough estimate or figure

The contractor gave us a ball park figure for the cost of repairing the new building.

bang for the buck

- value for the money spent

We were able to get a big bang for our buck when we advertised on the Internet.

banker's hours

- short work hours (similar to when a bank is open)

My sister's husband owns his own company and works banker's hours most days.

to bankroll someone

- to supply someone with money, to finance someone

The movie actor bankrolled his son while he was producing his first movie.

a bean counter

- an accountant

We asked the bean counters to look over the figures in the new budget.

a big gun/big cheese/big wheel/big wig

- an important person, a leader

The new director was a big wheel in his previous company but is not so important now.

the bottom falls out/drops out

- to fall below an earlier low price

When the bottom fell out of the coffee market many companies had to stop doing business.

the bottom line

- the total, the final figure on a balance sheet, results

When we examined the bottom line of the company we decided not to invest in it.

the bottom line

- the central issue of a discussion

My friends wanted to open a small restaurant but for me the bottom line was that if we didn't do some research I didn't want to invest any money.

to bottom out

- to reach the lowest or worst point of something

The value of the stock has begun to bottom out and should soon begin to increase in value.

the boys in the backroom

- a group of men making decisions behind the scenes

The boys in the backroom told us that we must close down the factory as soon as possible.

to break even

- to have expenses equal to profits

After only three months the company was able to break even and started to make a profit.

a budget squeeze/crunch

- a situation where there is not enough money in the budget

We have been going through a severe budget squeeze at our company and must stop wasting money.

to buy a stake in something

- to buy part ownership of a company or other enterprise

The large bank is planning to buy a stake in the small stock trading company.

to buy off (someone)

- to use a gift or money to divert someone from their duty or purpose (sometimes similar to a bribe and therefore illegal)

The land developer tried to buy off the politician but he was not successful.

to buy out (someone or something)

- to buy the ownership or a majority share of something

The large company decided to buy out the small textile company.

by a long shot

- by a big difference

The soap company beat out the bids of the other companies by a long shot.

a calculated risk

- an action that may fail but has a good chance to succeed

They took a calculated risk when they put the new computer screen on the market.

to call a meeting to order

- to start a meeting

Our supervisor called the meeting to order when everyone arrived in the conference room.

a captain of industry

- a top corporation officer

The president of our company was a captain of industry and after he retired he was appointed to many government boards.

to carry over

- to transfer (a figure) from one column or book to another

Our company is facing difficult times and we must carry over last year's losses to this year.

to carry over (something)

- to save or postpone for another time

We decided to carry over the sale to the Monday after the national holiday.

to carry the day

- to win complete support

The president's new idea carried the day and everyone supported him with enthusiasm.

to carry through with/on (something)

- to put into action

The steel company carried through with their plan to restructure operations.

to close out

- to sell the whole of something, to sell all the goods

They decided to close out the store and sell the remaining stock very cheap.

to close the books

- to stop taking orders, to end a bookkeeping period

They usually close the books at the end of December every year.

to close up shop

- to stop doing business (for a variety of reasons - not only financial reasons)

The university bookstore had to close up shop when the rents were increased.

(to make) a cold call

- to visit or telephone a potential but unknown customer from a list of people

When he first started to work at his company he was asked to make cold calls from the telephone book.

to come down in price

- to lower the price of one's product

We were forced to come down in price in order to sell our target number of cars for the month.

to come on strong

- to overwhelm someone with very strong language or personality

The salesman came on strong at the meeting and angered the other members of the team.

a company man

- a person who always works hard and agrees with his employers or company

My father was a company man and always put in an extra effort for his company.

a company town

- a town dominated by one industry or company

When the coal mine closed the company town faced severe economic times.

to crunch numbers

- to do mathematical calculations

Our accountant loves to crunch numbers and is one of the top managers in our company.

to cut a deal

- to make a business arrangement or contract

I was able to cut a deal with the contractor and we paid very little for our new kitchen.

to cut back

- to use fewer or use less of something

The company has been cutting back on entertainment expenses recently.

to cut corners

- to economize

We have been forced to economize on stationary expenses during these severe economic times.

to cut off

- to interrupt or stop

The speech by the president was cut off when the electricity went off in the building.

to cut one's losses

- to do something in order to stop losing money/time etc.

We should sell the old machinery as soon as possible and try to cut our losses.

to deliver the goods

- to succeed in doing a good job of what is expected

The new manager is not very popular but he is able to deliver the goods.

to double-check (something)

- to check something again to confirm if it is correct

We were unable to double-check the costs of the new products before the price list was printed.

to draw up a contract

- to make/draft a contract

The lawyer spent several hours drawing up a contract.

the face value (of something)

- the official value or worth of something

Although the face value of the postage stamp was very low it sold at the auction for much money.

fair play

- justice, equal and correct action toward someone

The company is very good to work for as they always use fair play when they are bargaining with their employees.

to figure (something) out

- to find an answer by thinking about something

Everyone is trying to figure out what our boss is going to do with the new equipment.

to fill the bill

- to be just what is needed

That new machine should fill the bill for what we need to finish the job.

(to have one's) finger in the pie

- to be involved in something, to receive money for something

The new manager has his finger in the pie of many small businesses.

to float someone a loan

- to loan someone money

I wanted the bank to float me a loan so that I could buy a new car.

to gain ground

- to go forward, to make progress

Our company has been gaining ground in its attempt to be the best in the industry.

to get a break

- to get an opportunity or good deal

We were able to get a break on the price of the paint and saved much money.

to get a raise

- to get an increase in one's salary

My sister worked hard and quickly got a raise in her new job.

to get off the ground

- to make a successful beginning

We were unable to get the new product off the ground but we will try again next year.

to give (someone) the green light

- to give permission to go ahead with a project

Our boss gave us the green light to begin work on the new sales campaign.

to go belly up

- to go out of business because of financial problems

The small computer company went belly up several months ago.

to go over the books

- to check and analyze the accounting records of a company

We hired an outside accountant to go over the books.

to go public

- to sell shares of a privately owned company to the public

The stock of the Internet company rose very quickly after they went public.

to go through with (something)

- to finish, to do as planned or as agreed

We have decided not to go through with our plans to build the new product until we solve several problems.

to hang out one's shingle

- to open one's own business (usually as a professional)

Our neighbor decided to hang out his shingle as a dentist soon after he finished school.

a hard sell

- a way of selling something that is very aggressive and uses much pressure

The car salesman was giving us a hard sell so we went to another dealer.

to have a stake in something

- to have part ownership of a company or other business

The oil company has a stake in the new undersea oil exploration company.

to have the floor

- to have permission to speak in a meeting

The president had the floor for almost an hour during the meeting.

heads will roll

- someone will be punished

Heads will roll when our boss learns about the money that we have lost.

to hold a meeting

- to conduct a meeting

We plan to hold a meeting next week to discuss the problems with our new product.

in black and white

- in writing

The company refused to deal with the customer's complaints until they were in black and white.

(to be) in charge of (someone or something)

- to be in control of someone or something, to be responsible for someone or something

My sister has been in charge of buying supplies at her company for many years.

(to be) in short supply

- to not have enough, to be less than the amount or number needed

Experienced computer programmers are in short supply in our company.

(to be) in stock

- to have something ready to sell or use

The store didn't have any printer ribbons in stock.

(to be) in the black

- to be successful or to be making money

The new company has been in the black for many years now.

in the long run

- over a long period of time

The company has been losing money recently but in the long run they should do very well.

(to be) in the loop

- to be involved or taking part in a job or in information sharing with one's colleagues etc.

I began to work in the evenings and was no longer in the loop at our company.

(to be) in the market for (something)

- to be ready to buy something

We have been in the market for a new computer for a long time.

(to be) in the red

- to be losing money, to be unprofitable

The company has been in the red since the price of oil began to rise rapidly.

(to be) in the works

- to be in preparation, to be in the process of being planned or developed

The camera company has a new automatic camera in the works but nobody knows about it.

to jack up (the price of something)

- to make a price higher

The steel company decided to jack up the price of steel at the beginning of the year.

to keep books

- to keep records of money gained and spent

The new sales manager has no experience to keep books and has made many mistakes.

to keep track of (something)

- to keep a count or record of something, to stay informed

They have been making a great effort to keep track of the number of visitors to their store.

a kickback

- an amount of money paid illegally for favorable treatment

The construction company was giving kickbacks to the local politicians.

to knock down the price

- to lower the price

I bargained hard so that I could knock down the price of the stereo.

to land an account

- to acquire an account

The salesman landed a large account on his first day of work.

to lay something on the table

- to present a matter for discussion

I went to the meeting and laid my concerns about the new product on the table.

lead time

- the time available to prepare for an event or put a product on the market

The lead time to get a book published is sometimes very long.

a line of products

- a group/category of products that are similar to each other

Our company will introduce a new line of products in the autumn.

liquid assets

- property or belongings that can easily be converted into cash

The company had to sell some of its liquid assets in order to raise cash.

to make a go of (something)

- to produce good results, to succeed

Although he works very hard in his small business he cannot make a go of it and may soon go out of business.

to make an offer

- to make a financial proposal for a product or service

We want to buy the house so we plan to make an offer on Saturday.

to make money hand over fist

- to make a lot of money on a continuous basis

The small ice cream shop has been making money hand over fist since it first opened.

to mean business

- to be serious

Our boss means business when he tells everyone to work harder.

to move to do something

- to propose to do something

I moved to have another meeting next week when we were able to gather more information.

a number cruncher

- an accountant, someone who works with numbers

Our president is a good number cruncher and understands the finances of our company.

(to be) on hand

- to be in one's possession, to be ready

We didn't have enough supplies on hand and were unable to finish the job.

(to buy something) on credit

- to buy something without paying cash

My friend had no money so he decided to buy the furniture on credit.

(to be/go) on the block

- to be for sale, to go on sale

As soon as we bought the company we began to put some of the equipment on the block.

out-of-pocket (expenses)

- the direct expenses that one must personally pay

I was out-of-pocket a lot of money when I decided to change jobs.

(to be) out of the loop

- to be not involved or taking part in a job or in information sharing with one's colleagues etc.

I was out of the loop during the negotiations and did not know what was going on.

to outsource (something)

- to use outside sources rather than those within a company or its facilities

The manufacturing company outsourced many of their products to several cities in Asia.

to overnight (something)

- to send a document or package somewhere for delivery the next day

We decided to overnight the new contract to our supplier.

to pay off

- to make a profit, to be successful/beneficial

A good education usually pays off over a long period of time.

to pay off a loan

- to finish paying back the money that one has borrowed from a bank/store etc.

The furniture manufacturer was unable to pay off their loan so they went out of business.

a piece/slice of the action

- a share in the activity or the profits of something

The inventor wanted a large piece of the action from the new computer that he had invented.

to plug a product

- to promote a product

The soccer star makes a lot of money when he agrees to plug a product.

a preferred customer

- a customer who does much business with you and who you give special discounts to

The man is a preferred customer and always gets his products soon after he orders them.

to put one's nose to the grindstone

- to work diligently

I put my nose to the grindstone and finished the job before the weekend.

to put (someone) on hold

- to disconnect someone temporarily from the telephone

I phoned the bank but they put me on hold for twenty minutes before someone spoke to me.

to put (something) on hold

- to postpone a project

The construction project was put on hold while they researched the problem with the bridge.

to put (someone) through

- to transfer someone to someone else's telephone

I phoned the credit card company and they quickly put me through to a supervisor.

red ink

- debt (the red ink on a financial statement)

The automobile company has been drowning in red ink because of the bad economic conditions.

red tape

- rules and regulations that seem unnecessary (often from the government)

There is a lot of red tape when you try to start up a new business.

to rule someone out of order

- to rule that someone is not following the rules of a meeting

The chairwoman ruled the salesman out of order when he began to disrespect the other members who were attending the meeting.

to run an ad

- to place/put an advertisement in a publication

The government decided to run an ad to tell the public about the new gas tax.

to run short

- to not have enough of something

They ran short of gasoline at the gas station and had to close early.

(to be) saddled with debt

- to be burdened with debt

Our company is saddled with debt and must do something about it quickly.

to second a motion

- to agree with a proposal

I seconded the motion where we decided to start one hour early every morning during the summer.

to sell like hotcakes

- to sell very quickly

The children's toys were selling like hotcakes at the end of the year.

to sell out

- to sell all of a product

Every year our company is able to sell out most of our summer goods.

to strike while the iron is hot

- to take advantage of an opportunity

I decided to strike while the iron was hot and applied for the job as soon as I heard about it.

a sweetheart deal

- a deal made between friends so that both may make a big profit

We made a sweetheart deal with our landlord and got our rent reduced.

to table a discussion

- to postpone a discussion until a later time

We tabled the discussion about the salary decrease until the next meeting.

to take a nosedive

- to collapse, to fail, to decrease in value

The stock market took a nosedive when the earnings of the oil company decreased.

to take a pay cut

- to accept a decrease in one's salary

The telephone workers were forced to take a pay cut after the strike.

to take on (someone)

- to give a job to someone or to hire someone

The company took on many new workers during the busy holiday season.

to take over

- to take control or possession of something, to take charge or responsibility of something

The government decided to take over the bank after it declared bankruptcy.

to take (a company) public

- to sell shares in a company to the general public

We decided to take our company public in order to raise money to expand our factory.

to take (something) at face value

- to take something that is said on its surface

I took what my friend said at face value.

to take stock

- to count the items of merchandise or supplies in stock, to take inventory

The department store closes down for three days every March in order to take stock.

to throw cold water on (something)

- to discourage or forbid something

The manager threw cold water on the plan to close down the factory for one week in August.

to throw money at (something)

- to try to solve a problem by spending money on it

The president of our company is willing to throw a lot of money at the problem to try and solve it.

a tight spot

- a difficult situation

The computer company has been in a tight spot since the shortage of computer chips appeared.

to turn a profit

- to make a profit

The supermarket has been turning a profit since the day that it opened.

turnover

- the selling and replacing of an amount of goods, the replacement of workers

The turnover of workers in the restaurant business is very high.

to turn over

- to buy and then sell something to customers

We turned over most of our stock last month.

to work out

- to plan, to develop

I spent the weekend trying to work out the budget estimates for next year.

to work overtime

- to work more than one's regular hours

I had to work overtime every Friday last month.

to write off (a loan/debt)

- to remove from a business record, to cancel a debt

It was impossible for the bank to collect the money so they were forced to write off the loan.

 

accounting Idioms

a bean counter

- an accountant

We asked the bean counters to look over the figures in the new budget.

the bottom line

- the central issue of a discussion

My friends wanted to open a small restaurant but for me the bottom line was that if we didn't do some research I didn't want to invest any money.

to break even

- to have expenses equal to profits

After only three months the company was able to break even and started to make a profit.

a budget squeeze/crunch

- a situation where there is not enough money in the budget

We have been going through a severe budget squeeze at our company and must stop wasting money.

to carry over

- to transfer (a figure) from one column or book to another

Our company is facing difficult times and we must carry over last year's losses to this year.

to close the books

- to stop taking orders, to end a bookkeeping period

They usually close the books at the end of December every year.

to crunch numbers

- to do mathematical calculations

Our accountant loves to crunch numbers and is one of the top managers in our company.

to figure (something) out

- to find an answer by thinking about something

Everyone is trying to figure out what our boss is going to do with the new equipment.

to go over the books

- to check and analyze the accounting records of a company

We hired an outside accountant to go over the books.

(to be) in the black

- to be successful or to be making money

The new company has been in the black for many years now.

(to be) in the red

- to be losing money, to be unprofitable

The company has been in the red since the price of oil began to rise rapidly.

to keep books

- to keep records of money gained and spent

The new sales manager has no experience to keep books and has made many mistakes.

a number cruncher

- an accountant, someone who works with numbers

Our president is a good number cruncher and understands the finances of our company.

red ink

- debt (the red ink on a financial statement)

The automobile company has been drowning in red ink because of the bad economic conditions.

(to be) saddled with debt

- to be burdened with debt

Our company is saddled with debt and must do something about it quickly.

to write off (a loan/debt)

- to remove from a business record, to cancel a debt

It was impossible for the bank to collect the money so they were forced to write off the loan.

advertising Idioms

bang for the buck

- value for the money spent

We were able to get a big bang for our buck when we advertised on the Internet.

to plug a product

- to promote a product

The soccer star makes a lot of money when he agrees to plug a product.

to run an ad

- to place/put an advertisement in a publication

The government decided to run an ad to tell the public about the new gas tax.

banking Idioms

to bail a company out

- to help or rescue a company with financial problems

The government decided to bail out the bank in order to maintain stability in the economy.

banker's hours

- short work hours (similar to when a bank is open)

My sister's husband owns his own company and works banker's hours most days.

to bankroll someone

- to supply someone with money, to finance someone

The movie actor bankrolled his son while he was producing his first movie.

to buy a stake in something

- to buy part ownership of a company or other enterprise

The large bank is planning to buy a stake in the small stock trading company.

a calculated risk

- an action that may fail but has a good chance to succeed

They took a calculated risk when they put the new computer screen on the market.

to float someone a loan

- to loan someone money

I wanted the bank to float me a loan so that I could buy a new car.

to have a stake in something

- to have part ownership of a company or other business

The oil company has a stake in the new undersea oil exploration company.

meeting Idioms

to call a meeting to order

- to start a meeting

Our supervisor called the meeting to order when everyone arrived in the conference room.

to have the floor

- to have permission to speak in a meeting

The president had the floor for almost an hour during the meeting.

to hold a meeting

- to conduct a meeting

We plan to hold a meeting next week to discuss the problems with our new product.

to lay (something) on the table

- to present a matter for discussion

I went to the meeting and laid all of my concerns about the new product on the table.

to move to do (something)

- to propose to do something

I moved to have another meeting next week when we were able to gather more information.

to rule (someone) out of order

- to rule that someone is not following the rules of a meeting

The chairwoman ruled the salesman out of order when he began to disrespect the other members who were attending the meeting.

to second a motion

- to agree with a proposal

I seconded the motion where we decided to start one hour early every morning during the summer.

to table a discussion

- to postpone a discussion until a later time

We tabled the discussion about the salary decrease until the next meeting.

sales Idioms

to (make a) cold call

- to visit or telephone a potential but unknown customer from a list of people

When he first started to work at his company he was asked to make cold calls from the telephone book.

to come down in price

- to lower the price of one's product

We were forced to come down in price in order to sell our target number of cars for the month.

a hard sell

- a way to sell something that is very aggressive and uses pressure tactics

The car salesman gave us a hard sell so we decided to go to another dealer.

to knock down the price of (something)

- to lower the price of something

I bargained hard so that I could knock down the price of the stereo.

to land an account

- to acquire an account

The salesman landed a large account on his first day of work.

a line of products

- a group/category of products that are similar to each other

Our company will introduce a new line of products in the autumn.

to make an offer

- to make a financial proposal for a product or service

We want to buy the house so we plan to make an offer on Saturday.

a preferred customer

- a customer who does much business with you and who you give special discounts to

The man is a preferred customer and always gets his products soon after he orders them.

to sell like hotcakes

- to sell very quickly

The children's toys were selling like hotcakes at the end of the year.