How does Business English differ from everyday speech? Business English is focused on operating a business and communicating in a business context. Good business English is clear, direct and unambiguous. This is because there are often a financial implications in they way communication is conducted. However, it can also contain metaphors which can confuse people who are not familiar with their deeper meaning.

Business English has a unique vocabulary from the area of business in which it specialises, e.g. finance, accounting, management, etc. These areas of expertise contain many technical words that are not necessarily understood in everyday speech. If you read business articles, it is important to have a business dictionary to help you understand the meaning of words.

Business English uses different vocabulary and metaphors from everyday speech. Metaphors are word pictures that help explain a situation by comparing it to something else. In business, metaphors are borrowed from other disciplines.

Why are metaphors so challenging for ESL learners to understand? It is because they are not literal and you can't find out what they mean by looking up individual words in a dictionary.

"The company is sinking," is an example of a metaphor used in business. It uses an expression that makes it clear that the company is in trouble financially. If you had never heard this expression before, it could be quite confusing because it cannot be taken literally. It compares the company to a ship that is floundering.

A good way to learn about Business English is to read the business section of a newspaper. Read through articles and have a pencil handy to identify metaphors and non-literal language.

Why not test yourself to see how many business words, phrases or metaphors you can find in one article? Then try to use some of these expressions in your own writing and speaking.

Here are some metaphors that are used in business. Can you tell where they come from?

1. "We are living in turbulent times."

2. "We're having a bumper crop of sales."

3. "There is a surge in interest in our products."

4. "We need to float a loan."

5. "The recent market crisis will cure some people's addiction to debt."

Answers

1. Aviation

2. Farming

3. Electrical engineering

4. Shipping

5. Psychology/Medicine.

David Isaacson is a Melbourne writer and publisher of Better English Today through Granville Stevens Publishing. Available from www.betterenglishtoday.com