Idioms for Business

Question 1

Across the board

Answer 1

включая всех/поголовно
Means all inclusive, everything, everybody

The company’s number were down across the board in every department.

Question 2

Ahead of the curve

Answer 2

занимать лидирующие позиции
Means to be better, more successful or advanced than other companies

With the bestselling product on the market, our company is ahead of the curve in sales.

Question 3

Back to square one

Answer 3

всё сначала, всё заново
Means to start something over again

The students didn`t understand the differences between the two concepts so the teacher started over again, going back to square one.

Question 4

Bang for the buck

Answer 4

соотношение затрат и прибыли, во всех смыслах, в частности полученного удовольствия и потраченных денег
Means more value or a better pay off for the investment of money spent

Internet advertising is lower priced and more universal giving it more bang for the buck.

Question 5

Bring home the bacon

Answer 5

1) зарабатывать достаточно 2) добиться своего; добиться успеха; оказаться в выигрыше
Means to earn money for the family

I work hard bringing home the bacon to support my family.

Question 6

Chicken feed

Answer 6

маленькая сумма, мелочь, жалкие крохи
Means a small amount of money (similar to working for peanuts)

His son always wants to borrow money and says that it is only chicken feed but little by little it adds up to a lot of money.

Question 7

Corner the market

Answer 7

монополизировать рынок, скупая товары
Means to have great or the greatest success in a specific market

Online courses are so convenient and growing so fast that, for English learning, they will soon corner the market.

Question 8

Crunching numbers

Answer 8

производить математические вычисления
Means to do mathematical calculations

Excel is a great program for crunching numbers.

Question 9

Dot your i’s and cross your t’s

Answer 9

Поставь точки над i (уточни свои слова, договаривай до конца)
Means to be very careful paying attention to every detail

This contract is very important so be sure to dot your i’s and cross your t’s.

Question 10

Fill the bill

Answer 10

отвечать всем требованиям; подходить
Means to provide just what is needed

His thorough knowledge and experience online will fill the bill to deliver our classes over the internet.

Question 11

Foot the bill

Answer 11

оплатить счёт, оплатить расходы
Means to cover the cost or payment for something or someone

The leading department in sales often has to foot the bill for the worst department to keep everyone working.

Question 12

From the ground up

Answer 12

до основания, основательно, полностью, досконально, во всех отношениях
Means to start something from “zero” and work up to the top

The website was totally redesigned from the ground up.

Question 13

Gravy train

Answer 13

выгодное предприятие
Means a job requiring little work for good pay, benefits etc.

The CEO, although never at work, was making millions riding the gravy train.

Question 14

Have a stake in something

Answer 14

быть заинтересованным в (чем-л.)
Means to have a partial ownership of a company or other business or to be somehow invested in something

With all my time, effort and money, I really have a stake in the business.

Question 15

In the black

Answer 15

не имеющий долгов, находящийся в хорошем финансовом положении
Means to be making a profit.

We are having a great year so our accounts are in the black.

Question 16

In the red

Answer 16

влезший в долги; превысивший кредит; убыточный
Means to not be profitable or operating at a loss.

We owe so much money that our accounts are in the red.

Question 17

In the loop / out of the loop

Answer 17

(не) принадлежащий к определенному кругу, не имеющий допуска к информации, не из наших
Means to be in or out of the group of people that are informed and up-to-date

Even though I was on vacation, through the internet, my secretary kept me in the loop.

Question 18

Jacking up the prices

Answer 18

набить[ поднять] цену
Means to increase the prices usually drastically

They took advantage of the product demand by jacking up the prices to increase their profits.

Question 19

Last straw

Answer 19

последняя капля (терпения)
Means the last action which causes someone to reach their breaking point, becoming mad, frustrated, or giving up

I gave up because the government’s lack of approval for new business incentives was the last straw.

Question 20

Loophole

Answer 20

лазейка; увёртка
Means that there is a way of interpreting a law or a rule in order to get around doing the right thing

Politicians are known for finding loopholes to take advantage of the laws.

Question 21

On a shoestring

Answer 21

в стеснённых обстоятельствах, на скудные средства
Means to be on a low budget with little money to invest

He built a major corporation up from nothing on a shoestring.

Question 22

Pass the buck

Answer 22

переложить ответственность (на другого)
Means to put the burden or blame for something on someone else

Many coworkers won’t take responsibility for their mistakes and pass the buck to others.

Question 23

Penny-wise and pound foolish

Answer 23

экономный в мелочах и расточительный в крупном
Means to wrongly care about the small details while not worrying about the larger challenges

His department is penny-wise and pound foolish and economizes on small items but wastes their money on big items.

Question 24

Plug a product

Answer 24

продвигать товар
Means to promote a product usually with a famous celebrity

The company is counting on the fame of the TV star to plug their product.

Question 25

Put one’s nose to the grindstone

Answer 25

заняться делом, взять себя в руки
Means to focus on working hard or purposefully

I put my nose to the grindstone and got this blog post done on time.

Question 26

Put someone through the wringer

Answer 26

выжимать все соки
Means to subject someone or something through intense questioning, testing or scrutiny

The new employee was put through the wringer before they decided to hire him.

Question 27

Safe bet

Answer 27

выигрышная, надёжная, верная ставка
Means something that will most likely occur

It’s a safe bet that we will succeed by working smarter.

Question 28

Sell like hotcakes

Answer 28

браться нарасхват
Means to sell a product quickly and easily due to popularity

The low price of the sought after app helped it sell like hotcakes.

Question 29

Strike while the iron is hot

Answer 29

куй железо, пока горячо
Means to take timely advantage of an opportunity

I will strike while the iron is hot and advertise more while people are talking about my product.

Question 30

Throw money at something

Answer 30

швырять деньги на ветер
Means to spend, and usually waste, money on a solution to a problem

The company went bankrupt because they would always foolishly throw money at the problem without a plan for a solution.

Question 31

Under the table

Answer 31

секретно, тайно, подпольно
Means to do something off the record and illegally

Some employers pay their employees under the table to avoid paying taxes.

Question 32

Work down to the wire

Answer 32

работать впритык
Means to go to the last minute to finish something

She waited until the last minute so she had to finish the work down to the wire.

Question 33

Worth his/her salt

Answer 33

хорошо знающий своё дело
Means to earn the monetary value of what one’s professional value is

The new employee, responsible for saving the business, was certainly worth his salt.

Question 34

Writing on the wall

Answer 34

неизбежное событие
Means the signs and indicators, mostly negative, which predict what will happen

Cutting back teacher salaries and letting go employees should be the writing on the wall that they will soon fail.