Business English is a bit like the fashion world – words, terms and phrases come into popular use only to become passé [to fall out of fashion] next year.

You are extra “cool” if you know the language and really “out of it” if you don’t.

Though fashions come and go, much of the terminology will remain in use for many years – which means students of Business English and international businesspeople, NEED to be familiar with it. Most native speakers unconsciously use jargon or slang that doesn’t mean much to speakers of English as a second or foreign language, so here we offer some guidance.

Colloquial American Business Jargon Defined

With credit to Pacific Overtures – whose business English website no longer exists.