10 ESSENTIAL Business English Expressions (With QUIZ)

In this lesson, you're going to learn important  business English expressions that will help you  

sound fluent, help you build your vocabulary, and  help you sound more professional in the workplace.

And make sure you watch right until the end,  

because I'm going to quiz you to make  sure you really know these expressions.

Welcome back to JForrest English.

I'm Jennifer.

Now let's get started.

Our first expression is to be well  versed in this is when you fully  

understand a specific topic or you  deeply understand a specific topic.

And when you're well versed in something,  it also means you're an expert.

An expert fully understands a topic, so  it's another way of saying you're an expert.

For example, she's well versed in international  law and she has written extensively on that topic.

Notice in this example it's in plus  something well versed in something,  

and in this case it's international law.

That's the topic.

That's her area of expertise.

She's an expert in international law.

She's well versed in international law.

You can also use in plus a gerund verb,  

so a verb in ING, so you just  need to turn it into an action.

For example, she's well versed in  writing about international law,  

so now we're focusing on the action of writing,  well versed in writing about international law.

Now let's talk about the expression to  play devil's advocate, this is when you  

present an opposing viewpoint or argument  for the sake of discussion or debate.

So let's say the topic we're discussing at  a business meeting is giving salary raises.

So giving raises to the employees.

And I personally don't think  it's a good idea to give raises.

I don't think the company can afford it,  but I could raise the opposing viewpoint  

simply for the purpose of discussing  it, understanding it, or debating it.

So I could say to play devil's advocate,  what if we gave everyone a 10% raise?

And when I say to play devil's advocate,  you understand that that isn't my opinion.

I'm only raising it for the purpose  of debating it or discussing it.

So it's a very useful expression  to have in your vocabulary.

Now let's talk about a fun  expression to go the extra mile.

This is when you do more than what's expected.

So it's a very positive thing.

Personally, I always try to go  the extra mile for my students.

For you, I always try to do  more than what's expected.

So it's expected to produce one video a week.

I produce more than one video a week.

I give free lesson PDF's, I include quizzes,  

and I spend a lot of time going the extra mile to  make sure you have the best experience possible.

So if you're happy about that,  why don't you put in the comments?

Thanks for going the extra mile.

Thanks for going the extra mile.

Put that in the comments and then I'll  keep going the extra mile just for you.

Now let's talk about the  expression to be in one's element.

This is when you're in an  environment or a situation  

where you feel both comfortable and also capable.

For example, when I'm teaching  right now, I'm in my element.

I feel very comfortable doing  this, and I also feel capable,  

which means I feel like I'm doing a good job.

I have the skills, I have the experience  necessary to do what I'm doing.

Right now.

I'm in my element, but on the other hand, I'm  not in my element when I'm analyzing statistics.

For example, I don't feel very comfortable  and I don't feel capable at all.

So I'm not in my element when I'm analyzing  statistics, but I'm definitely in my element  

when I'm creating these lessons for  you and right now when I'm teaching.

To give you another example,  let's take a musician, Ed Sheeran.

Ed Sheeran is in his element  when he's performing on stage.

And I wanted you to see this example to notice  that it's one's element, my element, his element.

So make sure you change that grammatically.

Our next expression is to have a knack  for when you have a knack for something,  

it means you possess a natural talent  OR ability with that something.

So, thinking about our last examples,  

when I'm in my element, it's because  I have a knack for teaching English.

For me it comes very naturally.

It's not something I have  to try really hard to to do.

I find it very easy to plan lessons, to  think of different ideas, to think of  

interesting ways to present the information,  to to record myself and create these videos.

I have a knack for teaching English  and I don't feel in my element.

I'm not in my element when I'm analyzing  statistics because I don't have a knack for math.

Of course I can do math, but it  doesn't come naturally to me.

It doesn't come easily to me.

I have to try harder to do math  because I don't have a knack for it.

And again, thinking about Ed Sheeran.

Oh, he's so popular because he has a  knack for writing beautiful love songs.

I'm sure it comes very easily for him Thinking  about how many love songs he has written.

It must come easily.

He must have a knack for it.

Now let's talk about the  expression to move the needle.

This is used when you have a  significant positive impact.

So when you move the needle, you go from here  to here, you don't just go from here to here,  

which would be a positive impact in  terms of growth, but it's a small one.

We want a significant positive  impact to move the needle.

For example, our new marketing  strategy, move the needle on our sales.

So this means the marketing strategy had an  

impact on the sales and it had  a significant positive impact.

So again, it helped the  sales go from here to here.

It moved the needle on our sales.

Let's think about you and your English abilities.

Maybe when you first started watching my  lessons, your English vocabulary was here.

But now, after watching my lessons  for a few months or even longer,  

your English vocabulary is here.

So you could say, Jennifer, your videos have  really moved the needle on my English vocabulary.

I hope you feel that way.

Because remember I go that extra mile to really  

make sure that you move the  needle on your English skills.

So if you agree with that, put move the needle,  

move the needle, put move  the needle in the comments.

This next one is an interesting  one, to leave no stone unturned.

This expression is used in two different ways.

First, it's when you thoroughly search  for something or look for something,  

and that's something physical.

So if you leave no stone unturned  is another way of saying you looked  

absolutely everywhere for something.

For example, we couldn't find any evidence  of fraud, and we left no stone unturned.

So in this case, what they're looking  for is fraud or evidence of fraud,  

and they looked absolutely everywhere.

They left no stone unturned.

In that sense, you're looking for something  physical, something that actually exists,  

and you can find it and hold it in your hand.

But we also use this expression to simply  mean that you've explored all possibilities.

So possibilities aren't necessarily physical,  you can't necessarily hold it in your hand.

For example, let's think of a solution,  and let's leave no stone unturned.

So again, it means you're going to think  of every possibility for the solution.

You're going to leave no stone unturned.

So you can use this expression in both a literal  sense and more of a figurative sense as well.

Let's talk about the expression  to put the cart before the horse.

Have you ever heard this?

This is when you do things in the wrong  order or you prioritize things incorrectly.

For example, you can't advertise your  business before you have a product to sell.

Don't put the cart before the horse.

So in this case you're using  it as advice to someone.

Don't put the cart before the horse.

Another sentence structure.

You could say he put the cart before the horse by  selling his house before he was offered a new job.

So maybe he applied for a  position in another city.

So if he gets the job he  would have to sell his house.

But he hasn't been offered the  job and he already sold his house,  

so he put the cart before the horse.

Our next expression is to be a work in progress.

So notice here all work.

That's the noun form, all work in progress.

This is when something is still being developed,  improved or refined and is not yet complete.

Of course you could say my English  skills are a work in progress,  

which means you're still  improving your English skills.

But don't worry, because so am I.

Learning a language is a lifelong process.

We also frequently use this  with specific projects.

Let's say I'm renovating my kitchen and someone  asked me, oh, how's the kitchen Renault going?

And I can say good, but it's a work in progress  just to let them know it's not yet complete.

Our last expression is a great one  to be a force, to be reckoned with.

This describes a person or an  entity that demands respect or  

attention because of its influence or abilities.

For example, Pablo's only been  with the company for six months,  

but he's a force to be reckoned with.

This means that although Pablo is a new employee,  

he's been receiving a lot of attention, a  lot of respect, and it's because of what  

he's doing, because of his abilities or his  influence, he's a force to be reckoned with.

Now, we also use this expression with  things or entities, organizations.

So the first thing I thought of  is AI, Artificial intelligence.

I think everyone can agree that  AI is a force to be reckoned with,  

and this means that AI it commands a lot of  

attention because of its abilities and  the impact that it's had on our lives.

AI is a force to be reckoned with.

To make sure you feel confident using these new  expressions in your speech, let's do a quiz.

Here are the questions.

Hit pause.

Take as much time as you need, and when  you're ready, hit play to see the answers.

Here are the answers.

Hit, pause.

Take as much time as you need and when  you're ready to move on, hit play.

Make sure you share your  score in the comments below.

And because I always go the extra mile,  

I've also included the free lesson PDF so  you can look for the link in the description.

And if you feel like these lessons help  you move the needle on your English skills,  

then I want you to put in the comments.

Move the needle.

Move the needle.

So I know you're enjoying these lessons  and I'll keep making them move the needle.

Put that in the comments and another way  I've gone the extra mile is by providing  

you with this free speaking guide  so you can get this on my website  

and I share 6 tips on how to speak  English fluently and confidently.

You can click here to download it or  look for the link in the description.

And if you want to keep moving  the needle on your English skills,  

I recommend you watch this lesson right now.