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BUSINESS ENGLISH · BUSINESS ISSUES · UPPER-INTERMEDIATE (B2-C1)

OFFICE
SPEAK
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1 Key words

Match the words on the left with their correct definitions on the right.

admiration cliché coin impact jargon

parody proliferation scribble sedentary tiresome

1. (noun, uncountable): technical or special words and phrases used by particular

groups of people, especially in their work (usually disapproving)

2. (noun): a comment that is not original and not interesting because it is used so
often

3. (adj.): boring or annoying

4. (noun): the effect that something has on a situation or person

5. (verb): to invent (a new word or expression)

6. (verb): to write something in a hurry and without taking care

7. (noun): great respect and approval for someone

8. (noun): the sudden and rapid spread of something

9. (adj.): involving a lot of sitting and little exercise or physical activity

10. (noun): a work of art (writing, music, film, etc.) which intentionally copies and
exaggerates the style of someone famous or a particular situation for comic
effect

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OFFICE SPEAK

2 Predict the answers

Look at the following office clichés commonly used in Britain. Have you heard any of them? Match
them to their correct meaning and read the article to check your answers.

1. Think outside the box a. do the most unpleasant task first

2. It’s not rocket science b. it’s not difficult to understand

3. Let’s touch base c. let’s keep in contact

4. Swallow the frog d. look at things from a new perspective

5. Push the needle e. make a brutal decision

6. Shoot the puppy f. take things to the next level

A guide to office speak

Few things are as irritating as the jargon of the modern workplace. But what do our everyday office
catchphrases really mean - and where do they come from?

1.
It probably won’t surprise you to learn that "thinking
outside the box" has just been voted the most
overused business cliché in the country, according
to a poll sponsored by the gaming company Ubisoft.
Apparently, "thinking outside the box", which refers
to looking at things from a new perspective without
preconceptions, was invented by some suit in the
Walt Disney organisation years ago. Tiresomely
enough, it is even now being used by apparently-
serious office workers - not least a slogan by the
Welsh Development Agency.
2.
In fact, next time you’re on a British Airways flight
look out for WDA’s little ad during the in-flight movie
programme. In Wales "thinking outside the box
comes naturally", says the voice-over, although the
organisation’s thinking is obviously not sufficiently
"outside the box" enough for them to avoid using the
cliché "think outside the box".
3.
Anyway, you may agree with the poll’s verdict, or you
may disagree, having your own least favourite bit of
business jargon. After all, there’s plenty of irritating
phrases that refuse to die.
4.
"It’s not rocket science" is another much-hated
example, but it hardly has the impact in an office
environment these days that it might once have
enjoyed, since it is heavily overused. Word experts
believe this most patronising of phrases meaning
"duh, are you stupid?" came into the American
business community’s consciousness during the Cold
War when rockets were first developed. The
act of launching craft into space was considered
so extraordinary that the science behind it was
presumed to be extremely difficult. So anything
else must be relatively easy. The big question is,
what phrase rocket scientists might choose to employ
when they decide to patronise one of their respected
colleagues?
5.
Elsewhere, it is strange how the greyest of tribes (the
accountants, the management consultants, the, oh
dear, "senior executives" and "team leaders") have
managed to coin usages that, although now overused
and abused, were once colourful, fresh and filled
with meaning. Once upon a time "let’s touch base"
must have been a relatively charming way of getting
a business "contact", if I can use that expression,
to keep in touch. When someone got up in a

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Powerpoint presentation and said, for the first time
in human history, that they wanted their company
or department to "push the needle", meaning ‘take
things to the next level’, it must have stimulated
corporate minds. "Swallow the frog" is a more recent
innovation, which has not yet become boring and
nicely expresses the idea of getting the nastiest task
of the day out of the way first. But soon, as with all
its predecessors, it will quickly become tedious and
uninspiring.
6.
But why? Why bother with the expressions such
as "shoot the puppy" (meaning ‘make a brutal
decision’)? Partly it’s a matter of competition; the
more memorable and lightly amusing the words
scribbled on a flip-chart, the more admiration the
inventor will receive. Partly, it’s a matter of confusing
the uninitiated and keeping them out. Mostly,
though, it’s probably because there really isn’t much
that is genuinely new for people in business to get
excited about.
7.
Despite the proliferation of laptops and BlackBerrys
and Excel spreadsheets, working in an office is as
sedentary and limiting as it ever was. Some people
love to "rebrand" old, tired ideas in different ways,
often to justify their own existence.
8.
The absurdities of office life, including its strange
language, have been joked about many times
over the years but sometimes, as these examples
demonstrate, the world of bizspeak really is just
beyond parody...
Adapted from The Independent, 23 November 2007

3 Checking understanding

Put T (True) or F (False) next to the following statements:

1. The writer generally approves of office jargon.

2. The writer believes that office catchphrases have always been boring and meaningless.
3. All the office catchphrases mentioned in the article have been overused, according to the writer.
4. Office jargon is used to impress and confuse.
5. The writer believes that technology has made office life more exciting.

4 Find the words

Find the words in italics in the article and answer the questions.

1. If something is overused (P1), do you think it is used too much or too little? What is its opposite?
2. What do you think suit (P1) means? Is the word approving or disapproving?
3. Which word in paragraph 4 describes a phrase that is spoken to someone as if they are stupid or
unimportant?
4. What do you think the writer means when he refers to accountants and management consultants
as the greyest of tribes (P5)?
5. Find seven words and expressions in paragraphs 3, 4, 5 and 8 which describe how the writer feels
about office jargon.

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OFFICE SPEAK

5 Speaking

Describe a situation when you had to ...

think outside the box
swallow the frog
push the needle
shoot the puppy

Are there any overused business clichés in your language/country? Do you find any of them useful?

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