Management for Dummies

Question 1

to walk out

Answer 1

to leave without explanation, especially in anger.

to walk out of a one-hour seminar

Question 2

anger
to anger
angry

Answer 2

a strong feeling of displeasure or rage

His anger rose at the insult.
His inconsiderateness angered me
An angry parent

(colère)

Question 3

to spring up
pp: sprung up

Answer 3

to arise suddently

The people sprang up in protest at the increase in the price of bread.
An entire management training industry has sprung up

Question 4

a tray

Answer 4

a flat, shallow container, used for carrying or displaying articles:

He carried his lunch tray to the table.

(plateau)

Question 5

leftover

Answer 5

food remaining uneaten at the end of a meal, esp. when saved for later use

A big tray of leftover veggies

Question 6

barely

Answer 6

no more than

I have barely enough money to pay the rent

(à peine, tout juste)

Question 7

to steer something

Answer 7

to guide the course of something

He kept steering the conversation back to his promotion.
steering employees in the right direction to accomplish their tasks on time and within budget.

Question 8

A way out of something

Answer 8

the means by which a predicament, dilemma, etc., may be solved

We are trying to find a way out of the crisis.

(échappatoire)

Question 9

a surge of something

Answer 9

a strong, forward movement like a wave

There is always a surge in toy sales in December.

Question 10

a layoff

Answer 10

a period of unemployment imposed on a worker

a layoff of several months.

Question 11

to find out

Answer 11

to gain knowledge of something

The detective found out the truth of the case.

(découvrir)

Question 12

to forster something

Answer 12

to promote the growth or development of something

To foster new ideas.
The goal is to foster the commercial relations between the two companies.

(promouvoir, favoriser)

Question 13

to unleash

Answer 13

to release from

Painting has unleashed my creativity.
The storm unleashed its fury.

(libérer)

Question 14

to sum it all up

Answer 14

to summarize

To sum it all up, Maria does what needs to be done.
This response really sums it all up.

Question 15

to turn back

Answer 15

To turn around to return

I am afraid we are now too far into the process to turn back.
You can’t turn back.

(revenir en arrière)

Question 16

in droves

Answer 16

a large crowd in motion

Employees will leave the companies in droves

(en nombre)

Question 17

to rock the boat

Answer 17

To disrupt the smooth functioning or routine of something.

Don’t rock the boat by demanding special treatment from management.

Question 18

thereof

Answer 18

of that

Engineer has reason to believe that the work or any part thereof has not been performed

Question 19

a soul

Answer 19

the spiritual part of humans
the principle of life, feeling, thought, and action in humans

You must find a way to engage their souls.

(âme)

Question 20

outstanding

Answer 20

superior; excellent;

Our number one goal is to provide outstanding customer service.

Question 21

to get out

Answer 21

to leave, to escape

I need to get out of my meeting this afternoon because I have a doctor’s appointment.

Question 22

a stance

Answer 22

Point of view; posture

The company has taken a proactive stance in creating the environment.
The president has a clear stance on the issue.

Question 23

trustworsthy

Answer 23

deserving of trust.
can be trusted

The business owner was lucky to have trustworthy employees to keep things running smoothly in his absence.

Question 24

to back up something

Answer 24

to support or assist something

These decision back up the best interest of the company.
Go ahead and tell the boss just what happened; I’ll back you up on it.

Question 25

buy-in

Answer 25

support, acceptance

This would ensure a total buy-in and facilitate the introduction and implementation of the new model.
Get their buy-in for even more success.

Question 26

to carry forward

Answer 26

to make progress with

Let’s carry the plans forward.
The company carried its losses forward to the next year.

Question 27

to await something

Answer 27

to wait with anticipation
to wait for

She was still awaiting an answer.

Question 28

compelling
to compel someone to do something

Answer 28

convincing
to cause someone by force to be or do something

He creates compelling visions.
His disregard of the rules compels us to dismiss him.
The spy thriller was a compelling story.

Question 29

to bring out

Answer 29

to reveal; cause to appear/be seen

That difficult job brought out the bad side of her nature.
She has a bad temper, and working at that difficult job brought it out.
It compels employees to bring out their best performance.

Question 30

a perk

Answer 30

perquisite: benefit of a job

Peter’s salary isn’t very high, but his job comes with great perks like health insurance and a staff discount.
Meeting are truly a perk of management.

Question 31

wayward

Answer 31

Turning away from what is right or proper; disobedient.

Molly couldn’t control her wayward teenage daughter.
With wayward employees, the nest managers learn to punish early.

(obstiné, capricieux)

Question 32

to wield something

Answer 32

to exercise, use, or control something.

They wielded the power in the government.
The people who have the information wield the power.

Question 33

to leverage something

Answer 33

use to advantage of something

(tirer profit de)

Question 34

to apprise something to somebody

Answer 34

to give notice to; inform

To be apprised of the death of an old friend.
To keep their co-workers apprised of the latest information.

Question 35

to miss out on something

Answer 35

to fail to experience.

By leaving early you missed out on the celebrations.
Managers who don’t communicate effectively are missing out on a vital role of management.

(passer à coté)

Question 36

tremendous

Answer 36

very great in size, amount, or intensity
extraordinary; excellent;

There was a tremendous explosion that demolished half the houses in the street.
That’s a tremendous film; you should go and see it.

(énorme, immense, phénoménal)

Question 37

goodwill

Answer 37

friendly disposition; benevolence;

(bonne volontée)

Question 38

to yell at somebody

Answer 38

shout angrily at somebody

Susan yelled at her dog but the barking continued.
He just getting through the day without being yelled at.

(gueuler sur quelqu’un)

Question 39

to harm somebody

Answer 39

to physically hurt something/somebody

Don’t harm yourself on this hiking trip.

Question 40

to stunt something

Answer 40

to slow down or prevent the growth of something

You stunt your employees’ growth.
The roses in the garden had been stunted by the frost.

Question 41

to hinder somebody/something

Answer 41

to cause delay, interruption, or difficulty in
to slow progress

Lack of money hindered completion of the project.

(entraver, faire obstacle à)

Question 42

throughout

Answer 42

during all of
to every part of

Study your personal interactions throughout your business day.
I looked throughout the house for the book.

Question 43

to straighten something out

Answer 43

to become straight, orderly, neat, or tidy

(redresser, résoudre quelque chose)

Question 44

to straighten something out

Answer 44

to become straight, orderly, neat, or tidy
to become free of confusion or difficulties

Let’s see if we can straighten this problem out.
The police tried to straighten out the mess.
If he’s not going to straighten out that billing process, I’ll just have to work around it myselft!

(redresser, résoudre quelque chose)

Question 45

incentive

Answer 45

Something that incites or tends to incite to action or greater effort, as a reward offered for increased productivity. Like reward, advantage, motivation, ..

The club offered incentives to attract new members.

Question 46

to figure something out

Answer 46

to understand;, solve.

We couldn’t figure out where all the money had gone.
I finally figured out this mathematical equation.
I figured out why the experiment was not working.

Question 47

to strive for something

Answer 47

work hard to achieve something

I strive for perfection when I write.
Creating a compelling vision for their employees to strive for.

(s’efforcer d’atteindre)

Question 48

to loom over something

Answer 48

The question of how to motivate employees has always loomed large over managers.

(planer sur, telle une menace qui plane sur qqc)

Question 49

to shy away from something

Answer 49

to draw back; to hesitate to do something

They shied away from that deal because they didn’t trust the salesman.
By nature, employees shy away from negative consequences.

Question 50

a turkey

Answer 50

(une dinde)

Question 51

seldom

Answer 51

rarely

We seldom see out old neighbours anymore.
Many employees seldom receive incentives during the course of their careers.

Question 52

keenly

Answer 52

intensely

Your ideas were keenly discussed by the board of directors.
We’re keenly aware of the need for more police presence there.
You are more keenly aware of your monetary needs and are much more motivated by cash.

Question 53

an entitlement

Answer 53

a right

Every person accused of a crime has an entitlement to legal representation.
Money becomes an expectation and then an entitlement for many, if not most, workers.

Question 54

a spark
to spark

Answer 54

fiery particle (étincelle)
to emit sparks

The motivator that sparks employees to apply their best efforts on the job.

(faire des étincelles)

Question 55

lavish

Answer 55

extravagant; generous

to lavish gifts on one’s children.

Rewards don’t need to be lavish or expensive to be effective.

Question 56

to lade

Answer 56

to put something on;
to load; to burden

He is laden with many responsibilities
Especially when the agenda is laden with less-than-happy items.

(charger)

Question 57

savvy

Answer 57

intelligent, get the sense of an idea.

A savvy cab driver who knew all the shortcuts.
Craig has a lot of savvy; he’ll be a good person to lead the project.

(jugeote, malin)

Question 58

to undermine
to be undermined

Answer 58

to gradually wear away
to weaken or destroy by degrees

Her health was undermined by the stress of her job.
Even the most enthusiastic employees will be undermined.

(ébranler)

Question 59

to pour

Answer 59

to flow from one container to another

She poured some milk into her coffee.
I poured myself another drink.
Employees pour neither energy nor passion into their work.

(verser)

Question 60

to summon

Answer 60

to gather (strength, courage,..)

Gareth wanted to give up, but somehow he summoned the will to carry on.
They’ll find it more difficult to summon the motivation to succeed.

(rassembler)

Question 61

to spill over

Answer 61

to overflow

The river spilled over its banks during the spring flood.
If this spills over to better customer service …

(déborder)

Question 62

to fret

Answer 62

to be upset, to be worry

Carly always fretted when her children were late.
If employees spend most of their time fretting over the financial state of the company.

(se tracasser)

Question 63

to lay somebody off

Answer 63

to suspend (workers) from employment with the intention of re-employing them at a later date/

The current economic crisis has led many companies to lay off some of their employees.

(licencier, renvoyer)

Question 64

to pervate

Answer 64

to become spread throughout all parts of:
to spread through

The smell of coffee pervaded the air.
The need to know what’s going on in one’s job is pervasive.

(envahir)

Question 65

unease

Answer 65

anxiety

Julia was filled with unease as she waited for the doctor to bring the test results.

This conversation create a sense of unease among employees.

(malaise, inquiétude)

Question 66

to struggle

Answer 66

have difficulty

I can drive a right-hand drive car, but I have to admit that I struggle.

(avoir du mal, être en difficulté)

Question 67

to instill something in somebody

Answer 67

to infuse slowly or gradually into the mind

Bringing employees into the loop can instill in them a greater sense of involvement.

(inspirer qqc à qq1)

Question 68

abreast
abreast of something

Answer 68

side by side
up to date with

Keep me abreast of any changes to the plan.
Keeping employees abreast of management’s goals.

Question 69

to ensue

Answer 69

be subsequent

The argument that ensued after the meeting went on for over an hour.
Keeping employees abreast of management’s goals and ensuing plans is imperative.

(s’ensuivre, qui en résulte)

Question 70

to ease

Answer 70

reduce pressure

The new construction eased the demand for houses.
It cam make a world of difference in easing employee tensions and fears.

(alléger, facilité)

Question 71

to buckle down

Answer 71

to set to work with strength and determination

I have to buckle down and finish this term paper.
Give the employees the confidence they need to buckle down.

(se mettre sérieusement au travail)

Question 72

a slate

Answer 72

type of flat rock

You start with a clean slate.

(ardoise)

Question 73

to probe

Answer 73

to examine thoroughly;
investigate

The economist probed into the problem.
Be especially thorough and methodical as you probe this particular area.

(sonder)

Question 74

thorough

Answer 74

done without forgetting anything:

The police carried out a thorough search of the area, but nothing was found.

(minutieux)

Question 75

to thrive

Answer 75

to grow healthily

All the plants in my garden are thriving.
You may know someone who thrives as a receptionist or someone who lives to sell.

(bien se porter, prospérer)

Question 76

to heed

Answer 76

to give careful attention to

Pam heeded the storm warning and went into the shelter.
Make sure your input is heeded.

(tenir compte)

Question 77

Besides

Answer 77

also

It’s a nice day for a walk, and besides, I need the exercise.

(en plus)

Question 78

a tale

Answer 78

a story

The friends all gathered around the campfire and told each other tales.
The following tales demonstrate the clear benefit of empowered teams.

(un récit)

Question 79

to dread something

Answer 79

to fear greatly;
to be very reluctant to experience

I dread the thought of arriving late.
Managers dread doing evaluations.

(appréhender, redouter)

Question 80

a dismay

Answer 80

to break down the courage of completely;
surprise unpleasantly:

The child’s failing grades dismayed his parents.
The performance evaluation can become a dreaded event full of surprises and dismay.

(désarroi, consternation)

Question 81

to grasp something

Answer 81

firm hold
to understand

Mike grasped his bag tightly on the subway.
Gerald couldn’t grasp the complicated concept that his teacher was trying to explain.

(saisir)

Question 82

to wander

Answer 82

to move around without a definite purpose or plan

Adam wandered along the beach.

(flâner, déambuler)

Question 83

a fringe benefit

Answer 83

A benefit, such as health insurance or a pension, received by an employee in addition to regular pay.

(avantage social)

Question 84

to bear something

Answer 84

To support

He could hardly bear the suspense.
The firm bears the coast of fringe benifits, overhead, insurances, …

Question 85

to jeopardize something

Answer 85

to put something at risk

Karen jeopardized her career to help a friend.
Physical violence jeopardizes your employees’ safety.

(mettre en péril)

Question 86

to counsel

Answer 86

to give advice to or about;

Question 87

a dismissal

Answer 87

firing from job

After his dismissal for stealing from his employer, James found it very hard to get another job.
Falsifying records can lead to immediate dismissal.

(licenciment)