Student A
Choose one of the idioms below and read out just the part in bold to your partner. They will pick one of the meanings they have mixed up on their worksheet, and you should try to decide if it is the right one. If you need to, you can then read out your whole example sentence to check
He was caught red-handed changing the company’s accounts to boost the share price and so had no choice but to resign
If you have a moment, I would like to pick your brains about my new project, as you worked on something similar last year
I should’ve studied English more when I had time on my hands when I was a university student
We were glad to see the back of Total Quality Management in our company, but the next management trend will be just around the corner!
There’s something odd about the new CEO, but I can’t quite put my finger on it
The workers are up in arms about a pay rise offer of only 2% percent in a time of rising profits and inflation
I got off on the wrong foot with my new company in Manchester when I told everyone I was a Chelsea fan on my first day
Bernie Madoff couldn’t pull the wool over their eyes forever, and his Ponzi scheme fraud went the way of all the others and collapsed
Part Two
Now listen to your partner read out just the parts in bold (the idiom) in their first example. Look at the definitions below and read out the one that you think best matches the meaning of the idiom that they said and see if they agree with you. If you need to, ask them to read out the whole example sentence so that you can check, then continue with the next example, etc. When you have decided for sure, write the idioms next to the explanations below.
Immune to or not notice criticism
Make sure people are alert and can’t feel too settled
Looking at something from the opposite point of view, e.g. looking at the negative consequences
Something that is a generalisation or simplification but often holds true
Make it clear that you are not too closely involved in something
React to circumstances without knowing what will happen in advance
Clap/ Give a round of applause
An instinctive (not logical) idea or prediction
Business body idioms pairwork dictation
Student B
Part One
Listen to your partner read out just the parts in bold (the idiom) in their first example. Look at the definitions below and read out the one that you think best matches the meaning of the idiom that they said and see if they agree with you. If you need to, ask them to read out the whole example sentence so that you can check, then continue with the next example, etc. When you have decided for sure, write the idioms next to the explanations below.
- a) Not able to define or understand something exactly
- b) Fool people
- c) See someone committing a crime or doing something wrong
- d) Have plenty of leisure
- e) Make a bad start
- f) Very unhappy about or protesting
- g) See if you have any good ideas that can help me
- h) It’s gone, and we are happy about that
Part Two
Choose one of the idioms below and read out just the part in bold to your partner. They will pick one of the meanings they have mixed up on their worksheet, and you should try to decide if it is the right one. If you need to, you can then read out your whole example sentence to check
I didn’t have any time to prepare for the meeting and had no idea what the client’s response to our products would be, so I just played it by ear
I think working abroad would be a great learning experience, but on the other hand it would probably interrupt my long term career plans
Now, here is our guest speaker for the day, Steve Jobs. Let’s all give him a big hand
My favourite business rule of thumb is that if it seems too good to be true, it probably is
Some big companies have separate teams working on competing products in the same segment to keep everyone on their toes
You have to be thick skinned to be a PR consultant, and you take things too much to heart to be suited to a job like that
The business plan seems perfect on paper, but I have a gut feeling that it will all go horribly wrong
Despite its high profits since they took it over, the conglomerate’s top management are keeping the consumer loans division at arm’s length in case it becomes a victim of the bad publicity or sudden drop in profits that that part of the finance sector is prone to
Business body idioms pairwork dictation- Answer key
He was caught red-handed changing the company’s accounts to boost the share price and so had no choice but to resign – See someone committing a crime or doing something wrong
If you have a moment, I would like to pick your brains about my new project, as you worked on something similar last year – See if you have any good ideas that can help me
I should’ve studied English more when I had time on my hands when I was a university student- Have plenty of leisure
We were glad to see the back of Total Quality Management in our company, but the next management trend will be just around the corner!- It’s gone, and we are happy about that
There’s something odd about the new CEO, but I can’t quite put my finger on it – Not able to define or understand something exactly
The workers are up in arms about a pay rise offer of only 2% percent in a time of rising profits and inflation- Very unhappy about or protesting
I got off on the wrong foot with my new company in Manchester when I told everyone I was a Chelsea fan on my first day- Make a bad start
Bernie Madoff couldn’t pull the wool over their eyes forever, and his Ponzi scheme fraud went the way of all the others and collapsed- Fool people
I didn’t have any time to prepare for the meeting and had no idea what the client’s response to our products would be, so I just played it by ear- React to circumstances without knowing what will happen in advance
I think working abroad would be a great learning experience, but on the other hand it would probably interrupt my long term career plans- Looking at something from the opposite point of view, e.g. looking at the negative consequences
Now, here is our guest speaker for the day, Steve Jobs. Let’s all give him a big hand- Clap/ give a round of applause
My favourite business rule of thumb is that if it seems too good to be true, it probably is- Something that is a generalisation or simplification but often holds true
Some big companies have separate teams working on competing products in the same segment to keep everyone on their toes– Make sure people are alert and can’t feel too settled
You have to be thick skinned to be a PR consultant, and you take things too much to heart to be suited to a job like that- Immune to or not notice criticism
The business plan seems perfect on paper, but I have a gut feeling that it will all go horribly wrong- An instinctive (not logical) idea or prediction
Despite its high profits since they took it over, the conglomerate’s top management are keeping the consumer loans division at arm’s length in case it becomes a victim of the bad publicity or sudden drop in profits that that part of the finance sector is prone to- Make it clear that you are not too closely involved in something
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