Work & Careers
Work & business · 269 words
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The words
269 words
- accountant/əˈkaʊn.tənt/noun · B2The professional who takes care of a company's numbers and taxes.
- accreditation/əˌkɹɛd.ɪˈteɪ.ʃən/noun · C1Official recognition that you meet a standard.
- acquisition/ˌæk.wɪˈzɪʃ.ən/noun · C1One company buying another whole.
- agenda/əˈd͡ʒɛn.də/noun · B2The written list of what a meeting will discuss, in order.
- applicant/ˈæp.lɪ.kənt/noun · B2+A person trying to get the job.
- apply/əˈplaɪ/verb · A2+To officially ask for a job or a place by sending your papers.
- appraisal/əˈpɹeɪzəl/noun · C1The yearly meeting where your boss reviews how well you worked.
- apprentice/əˈpɹɛntɪs/noun · B2+A young person taken on by a skilled tradesman in order to learn the craft over a set number of years.
- apprenticeship/əˈpɹɛn.tɪs.ʃɪp/noun · C1Years of learning a craft by working beside a master.
- arbitration/ˌɑː.bɪˈtɹeɪ.ʃən/noun · C1Settling a dispute through a chosen judge, outside court.
- architect/ˈɑː.kɪˌtɛkt/noun · B1+The person who draws the plans that buildings are built from.
- asset/ˈæsɛt/noun · B2Anything of value a company or person owns.
- astronaut/ˈæstɹəˌnɔːt/noun · B1A person who travels into space in a rocket.
- audit/ˈɔːdɪt/noun · C1An official inspection of accounts or processes.
- auditor/ˈɔːdɪtɚ/noun · B2+The outside expert who checks a company's accounts.
- babysitter/ˈbeɪ̯biˌsɪtə/noun · B1+The person paid to watch the children while parents go out.
- backlog/ˈbæk(ˌ)lɔɡ/noun · B2+The pile of work that has built up unfinished.
- baker/ˈbeɪ.kə/noun · B1The person who gets up early to make fresh loaves and cakes.
- bankruptcy/ˈbæŋ.kɹʌp(t).si/noun · B2+The legal state of having no money left to pay your debts.
- benchmark/ˈbɛnt͡ʃmɑːk/noun · B2+The standard other performances are measured against.
- benefits packagenoun · B2Everything you get besides the money.
- blacklist/ˈblæklɪst/noun · B2+A list of people an industry refuses to employ.
- blacksmith/ˈblæk.smɪθ/noun · B2The craftsman who shapes hot iron with a hammer.
- bodyguard/ˈbɒdiɡɑːd/noun · B1+The strong person paid to keep someone famous safe.
- bonus/ˈbəʊ.nəs/noun · B1Extra money on top of your normal pay for good results.
- boss/bɒs/noun · A2The person at work who tells everyone else what to do.
- brainstorm/ˈbɹeɪnstɔːm/verb · B2+To throw out wild ideas together until a good one appears.
- branch/bɹɑːnt͡ʃ/noun · B1One local office or shop of a much bigger company.
- briefing/ˈbɹiː.fɪŋ/noun · B2+A short meeting that gives people the information they need to act.
- budget/ˈbʌd͡ʒ.ɪt/noun · B2The plan for how much money can be spent on something.
- builder/ˈbɪl.də/noun · B1+The worker in a hard hat who puts up houses.
- bureaucracy/bjʊəˈɹɒk.ɹə.si/noun · C1The maze of forms, stamps, and offices that slows everything down.
- burnout/ˈbɜː(ɹ)naʊt/noun · B2+Deep exhaustion from months of too much stress on the job.
- business/ˈbɪz.nɪs/noun · A1The activity of making, buying, and selling to earn money.
- butcher/ˈbʊt͡ʃə/noun · B1The shop worker who cuts and sells meat.
- career/kəˈɹɪə/noun · B1Your whole working life, seen as one long road.
- career breaknoun · B2A planned period away from working life.
- career changenoun · B1A move into a completely different line of work.
- career laddernoun · B2The series of steps upward through a profession.
- carpenter/ˈkɑː.pən.tə/noun · B2The craftsman who builds things from wood.
- cashier/kəˈʃɪə/noun · B1The person at the till who takes your money in a shop.
- chain of commandnoun · C1The order of who answers to whom.
- charity/ˈtʃæɹɪti/noun · A2+An organization that collects money to help people in need.
- charteredadjective · C1Holding formal professional status in a field.
- chef/ʃɛf/noun · A2+The professional in a tall white hat who runs a restaurant kitchen.
- cleaner/ˈkliː.nə/noun · A2+The person whose job is making offices and homes spotless.
- clerk/klɑːk/noun · B2An office or shop worker who handles papers and records.
- client/ˈklaɪ.ənt/noun · B1The person or company that pays a professional for their services.
- colleague/ˈkɒliːɡ/noun · B1+A person who works at the same place as you.
- collective bargainingnoun · C1Negotiating pay for all the workers at once.
- commission/kəˈmɪʃən/noun · B2+A share of a sale paid to whoever made it happen.
- commute/kəˈmjuːt/noun · B2+The daily trip between your home and your workplace.
- company/ˈkʌmp(ə)ni/noun · A1An organization that sells products or services.
- company carnoun · B1A vehicle provided by an employer for work use.
- constructive dismissalnoun · C2Being forced to resign by intolerable treatment.
- consultant/kənˈsʌl.tənt/noun · B2+An outside expert companies pay for advice.
- contract/ˈkɒntɹækt/noun · B2The legal paper both sides sign when agreeing to a job or a deal.
- corporation/ˌkɔː.pəˈɹeɪ.ʃən/noun · B2A very large formal company, often global.
- counter-offernoun · C1A better offer made to keep you from leaving.
- cover letternoun · B2The one-page letter sent with your CV to sell yourself.
- covering letternoun · B2The letter sent with an application explaining yourself.
- curriculum vitae/kəˈɹɪkjələm ˈviːteɪ/noun · B2The document listing your education and jobs.
- deadline/ˈdɛdˌlaɪn/noun · B2The date or hour when your task must be finished — no later.
- demotionnoun · B2+Being moved down to a less important position.
- dentist/ˈdɛntɪst/noun · A2+The person who looks after your teeth.
- department/dɪˈpɑːtm(ə)nt/noun · A2+One division of an organisation with its own work.
- designer/dɪˈzaɪnɚ/noun · A2+A person who decides how products, clothes, or websites should look.
- direct reportnoun · C1Somebody who reports to you.
- dismissal[dɪsˈmɪsəɫ]noun · C1Being formally removed from your job.
- dividend/ˈdɪvɪdɛnd/noun · B2+The slice of profit paid out to shareholders.
- doctor/ˈdɒktə(ɹ)/noun · A1The person you visit when you are ill; they help you get better.
- driver/ˈdɹaɪ.və/noun · A1The person behind the wheel of a car, bus, or taxi.
- duty/ˈdjuː.ti/noun · B1Something you must do because it is your job or your moral obligation.
- editor/ˈɛd.ɪ.tə/noun · B1+The person who corrects and improves texts before they are published.
- efficiency/ɪˈfɪʃ.ən.si/noun · B2Getting the most done with the least waste.
- electrician/ɪˌlɛkˈtɹɪʃ(ə)n/noun · B2The professional who safely repairs the wires in your walls.
- embargo/ɪmˈbɑɹɡoʊ/noun · C1An official ban on trading with a certain country.
- employee/ˌɛm.plɔɪˈiː/noun · A2+A person who is paid to work for a company.
- employer/ɪmˈplɔɪə/noun · B1+The company or person that pays people to work.
- engineer/ˌɛn(d)ʒɪˈnɪə/noun · A2+A person who designs and builds machines, bridges, or software.
- entrepreneur/ˌɒn.tɹə.pɹəˈnɜː/noun · B2+A person who starts their own company and takes the risk it brings.
- entrepreneurship/ˌɒn.tɹə.pɹəˈnɜːʃɪp/noun · C1The art and risk of building your own business.
- exit interviewnoun · C1The conversation held with somebody who is leaving.
- expenses/ɪkˈspɛnsɪz/noun · B1+Money spent for work that the employer pays back.
- experience/ɪkˈspɪə.ɹi.əns/noun · A2The knowledge you have because you have done something for years.
- factory/ˈfæk.tə.ɹi/noun · A2+The big building where machines and people make products.
- farm/ˈfɑːm/noun · A1The land where a family grows food and keeps animals.
- farmer/ˈfɑɹ.mɚ/noun · A1The person who grows crops and keeps cows and sheep.
- feedback/ˈfiːdˌbæk/noun · B2Honest comments on your work that help you improve it.
- fire/ˈfaɪ.ə/verb · B1To tell an employee they must leave their job.
- firefighter/ˈfaɪə(ɹ)ˌfaɪ.tə(ɹ)/noun · B2+The brave worker who rides a red truck and puts out flames.
- fixed-termadjective · B2Lasting only for an agreed period.
- florist/ˈflɒɹɪst/noun · B1+The shopkeeper who sells and arranges flowers.
- franchise/ˈfɹænt͡ʃaɪ̯z/noun · C1The right to run your own branch of a famous brand.
- freelance/ˈfɹiːlɑːns/adjective · B2+Working for many different clients instead of one fixed employer.
- freelancer/ˈfɹiː.lɑːn.sə/noun · B1+A worker who sells their skills job by job, with no single employer.
- freelancingnoun · B2+Working for many clients rather than one employer.
- full-time/ˌfʊl ˈtaɪm/adjective · B2Working the normal complete week.
- garden leavenoun · C2Being paid to stay away during your notice period.
- gardener/ˈɡɑɹd.n̩.ɚ/noun · B2The person paid to care for plants, flowers, and lawns.
- glass ceiling/ɡlɑːs ˈsiːlɪŋ/noun · C1The invisible barrier stopping people rising further.
- graduate schemenoun · B2A training programme for new university leavers.
- grievance procedurenoun · C1The formal steps for making a complaint at work.
- guide/ɡaɪd/noun · A2+The person who shows tourists around and explains what they see.
- hairdressernoun · B1The person who cuts and styles what grows on your head.
- harassment/həˈɹæsmənt/noun · C1Repeated unwanted behaviour that makes work unbearable.
- headquarters/ˌhɛdˈk(w)ɔː.təz/noun · B1The main central office a company is run from.
- health and safetynoun · B2The rules that keep a workplace from harming people.
- hierarchy/ˈhaɪ.ə.ɹɑː(ɹ).ki/noun · C1The ladder of who reports to whom, from bottom to top.
- hire/ˈhaɪ(.)ə/verb · A2To give someone a job at your company.
- hybrid workingnoun · B2Splitting the week between home and workplace.
- incentive/ɪnˈsɛntɪv/noun · B2+The reward dangled in front of you to make you work harder.
- income/ˈɪnˌkʌm/noun · B2All the money that comes to you — from jobs, rent, or anything else.
- induction trainingnoun · C1The first teaching given to a new employee.
- industrial actionnoun · C1Organised protest by workers, such as a strike.
- industry/ˈɪn.də.stɹi/noun · B1All the companies making one kind of thing — cars, films, or steel.
- intern/ɪnˈtɝn/noun · B1+The student doing a short first job to learn the profession.
- internship/ˈɪntɜːnʃɪp/noun · B2A short first job, often unpaid, where a student learns a profession.
- interview/ˈɪn.tə.vjuː/noun · B1The formal conversation where a company decides whether to give you a job.
- interview panelnoun · B2The group of people who question a candidate together.
- inventory/ˈɪn.vən.tɹi/noun · B2The complete counted list of goods a business holds.
- invoice/ˈɪnˌvɔɪs/noun · C1The formal bill one business sends another for work done.
- job/dʒɒb/noun · A1What you do every day to earn money.
- job descriptionnoun · B1The written account of what a post involves.
- job offernoun · B1The formal invitation to take a post.
- job securitynoun · B2How safe your position is from being lost.
- judge/d͡ʒʌd͡ʒ/verb · B1To decide how good or bad something is after looking at it carefully.
- key performance indicatornoun · C1A number chosen to show whether work is going well.
- lawyer/ˈlɔːjə(ɹ)/noun · A2The professional who speaks for you in court and knows the rules of the land.
- liability/laɪəˈbɪlɪti/noun · C1A debt owed, or a person who has become a burden.
- librarian/laɪˈbɹɛə̯ɹi.ən/noun · B1+The person who looks after all the books in a quiet building.
- line managernoun · B2The person you report to directly.
- lockoutnoun · C1An employer shutting workers out to force terms.
- logistics/ləˈd͡ʒɪstɪks/noun · B2+The planning of how goods and people move where they must go.
- magician/məˈd͡ʒɪʃən/noun · B1The performer who pulls rabbits from hats and makes cards vanish.
- manager/ˈmæn.ɪ.dʒə/noun · A2+The person who leads a team and makes the daily decisions.
- maternity leavephrase · B2The months off work a mother takes around the birth of her baby.
- mechanic/mɪˈkænɪk/noun · B2The person who repairs cars in a garage.
- meeting/ˈmiːtɪŋ/noun · A1When people sit around a table to talk about plans and decisions.
- memo/ˈmɛməʊ̯/noun · C1A short written note sent around an office.
- mentor/ˈmɛn.tɔː/noun · C1The experienced guide who helps a younger person grow.
- mentorshipnoun · B2Guidance given by somebody more experienced.
- merger/ˈmɜː.d͡ʒə/noun · C1Two companies joining into one.
- milestone/ˈmaɪlˌstoʊn/noun · B2+One big marked point of progress on the road to the goal.
- miner/ˈmaɪnə(ɹ)/noun · B2A worker who digs coal or gold deep under the ground.
- minutes/ˈmɪnɪts/noun · B2The official written record of what a meeting decided.
- monopoly/məˈnɒpəli/noun · C1One company controlling a whole market with no competitors left.
- moonlightingnoun · C1Working a second job, often without telling the first.
- morale/məˈɹɑːl/noun · B2The shared fighting spirit of a team or group.
- motivation/ˈməʊ.tɪ.veɪ.ʃən/noun · B2The reason and drive that makes you act.
- negotiation/nɪˌɡəʊ.ʃiˈeɪ.ʃən/noun · B2+The back-and-forth talk where two sides bargain toward a deal.
- networking/ˈnɛtˌwɜː(r)kɪŋ/noun · B2+Building useful professional contacts over coffee and conferences.
- nine-to-fivenoun · B2An ordinary office job with fixed daily hours.
- notice/ˈnəʊ.tɪs/noun · B2The formal warning you give before leaving your job.
- nurse/nɜːs/noun · A1The hospital worker who cares for sick people day and night.
- office/ˈɒf.ɪs/noun · A1The room with desks and computers where many people do their jobs.
- org chartnoun · C1The diagram showing how an organisation is arranged.
- outsourcing/ˈaʊtˌsɔː.sɪŋ/noun · B2+Paying an outside company to do work your own staff once did.
- overtime/ˈəʊ.və.taɪm/noun · B2Extra hours you work after the normal day ends.
- overtime paynoun · B1Extra money for hours worked beyond the normal day.
- part-timeadjective · B2Working fewer than the usual full hours.
- pay cutnoun · B1A reduction in what you are paid.
- pay risenoun · B1An increase in what you are paid.
- pay scalenoun · B2The ladder of rates a job can be paid at.
- paycheck/ˈpeɪ.t͡ʃɛk/noun · B1+The money, or the piece of paper for it, you receive on payday.
- payroll/ˈpeɪˌɹəʊl/noun · B2The complete list of employees and the money each is paid.
- peer/pɪə/noun · B2Someone of the same rank or standing as you at work.
- pension/ˈpɛnʃən/noun · B2+The money older people receive every month after their working years end.
- per diem/pɚˈdi.əm/noun · C2A fixed daily allowance while travelling for work.
- performance reviewnoun · B2The regular assessment of how well you work.
- perk/pɝk/noun · B2A nice extra that comes with a job — free lunches, a company car.
- permanent contractnoun · B1An agreement with no set end date.
- person specificationnoun · C1The list of qualities a candidate must have.
- personal protective equipmentnoun · B2The gear worn to keep a worker safe.
- pharmacist/ˈfɑɹməsɪst/noun · B2+The professional in the green-cross shop who prepares your medicine.
- photographer/fəˈtɒɡ.ɹə.fə/noun · B1A person who takes pictures for a living.
- picket/ˈpɪkɪt/noun · B2+A worker standing outside to persuade others not to enter.
- pilot/ˈpaɪ̯.lət/noun · A2+The person who flies a plane.
- placement/ˈpleɪ̯smənt/noun · B2A period of work experience as part of a course.
- plumber/ˈplʌm.ə/noun · B2The person you call when water pipes leak.
- portfolio/pɔːtˈfəʊ.liˌəʊ/noun · C1The collected examples of your best work you show to clients.
- postman/ˈpəʊs(t)mən/noun · B1The person who brings letters and packages to your door.
- probation/ˌpɹə(ʊ)ˈbeɪʃən/noun · B2The trial months at a new job before it becomes permanent.
- probation reviewnoun · C1The check made before a new job is confirmed.
- product/ˈpɹɒd.əkt/noun · B1A thing that is made to be sold.
- productivity/ˌpɹɒdʌkˈtɪvəti/noun · C1How much useful output your hours actually produce.
- profession/pɹəˈfɛʃ.ən/noun · B1A job that needs long education, like medicine or law.
- professional developmentnoun · B2Training that keeps your skills current.
- profit/ˈpɹɒfɪt/noun · B1The money a business keeps after paying all its costs.
- programmer/ˈpɹəʊɡɹæmə/noun · B2+A person who writes the code that makes computers do things.
- promotion/pɹəˈməʊʃn̩/noun · B2Moving up to a higher position at the same company.
- psychologist/ˌsaɪˈkɑl.ə.d͡ʒɪst/noun · B2+The professional who studies the mind and helps people with their feelings.
- qualification/ˌkwɒlɪfɪˈkeɪʃən/noun · B2+The official paper or skill that proves you can do a job.
- quit/kwɪt/verb · A2To leave your job because you choose to.
- quota/ˈkwəʊ.tə/noun · C1The fixed amount you must reach or may not pass.
- raise/ɹeɪz/noun · B1The happy moment your pay goes up.
- receptionist/ɹɪˈsɛp.ʃə.nɪst/noun · B1+The person at the front desk who greets visitors and answers the phone.
- recognition/ˌɹɛkəɡˈnɪʃ(ə)n/noun · B2Being noticed and praised for what you did.
- recruitment/rɪˈkruːt.mənt /noun · B2+The process of finding and choosing new people for jobs.
- redundancy/ɹɪˈdʌnd(ə)nsi/noun · C2Losing your job because the company no longer needs the role.
- redundancy paynoun · B2Money given when a job is no longer needed.
- referee/ˌɹɛf.əˈɹiː/noun · B2Somebody who will vouch for you to an employer.
- reference/ˈɹɛf.(ə.)ɹəns/noun · B1The letter from an old boss telling a new one how good you were.
- reference requestnoun · B2An employer's enquiry about a former worker.
- relocation/ˌɹiːləʊˈkeɪʃən/noun · B2+Moving to a new place because of your job.
- remote workphrase · B1Doing your job from home instead of the office.
- resignation/ˌɹɛz.ɪɡˈneɪ.ʃən/noun · C1The formal act of quitting your job, letter included.
- resume/ɹɪˈzjuːm/noun · B2+The one-page paper that lists your education and jobs so far.
- retire/ɹɪˈtaɪə/verb · B1+To stop working for good because you have reached the age for it.
- retirement/ɹəˈtaɪə(ɹ).mənt/noun · B2The years after you stop working for good.
- revenue/ˈɹɛvənjuː/noun · B2+All the money flowing into a company before any costs are paid.
- risk assessmentnoun · B2The check on what could go wrong and how to stop it.
- sabbatical/səˈbætɪkəl/noun · C1A long approved break from a job.
- sailor/ˈseɪ.lɚ/noun · B1A person who works on a ship at sea.
- salary/ˈsæləɹi/noun · B1+The fixed money you receive from your company every month.
- scientist/ˈsaɪəntɪst/noun · A2+A person who does experiments to discover how the world works.
- secondment/səˈkɒn(d)mənt/noun · C1A temporary move to another team or organisation.
- secretary/ˈsɛk.ɹə.tə.ɹi/noun · A2+The office worker who manages letters, calls, and appointments for a boss.
- self-employedadjective · B1Working for yourself rather than for an employer.
- shepherd/ˈʃɛpəd/noun · B2The person who watches over sheep in the hills.
- shift/ˈʃɪft/noun · B1The block of hours you work — days one week, maybe nights the next.
- shortlistnoun · C1The small group chosen from all the applicants.
- sick leavephrase · B2The paid days off you take when you are too ill to work.
- side hustlenoun · B2Paid work done outside your main job.
- sideways/ˈsaɪdweɪz/noun · C1A change of job at the same level.
- skill/skɪl/noun · B1Something you can do well because you learned and practiced it.
- soldier/ˈsəʊld͡ʒə/noun · A2A person who serves in the army.
- sole tradernoun · C1A person running a business alone in their own name.
- stakeholder/ˈsteɪkˌhəʊl.də/noun · C1Anyone affected by a company's decisions, not just its owners.
- starting salarynoun · B1The pay a job begins at.
- startup/ˈstɑɹtˌʌp/noun · B1+A brand-new company chasing fast growth, often from a garage.
- strike/stɹaɪk/noun · B2When all the workers stop at once to demand better pay.
- subordinate/səˈbɔːdɪnət/noun · C1Somebody of lower rank than you.
- subsidiary/sʌbˈsɪ.di.əɹ.i/noun · C1A company owned and controlled by a bigger one.
- supervisor/ˈsuːpəˌvaɪzə(ɹ)/noun · C1The person directly in charge of your daily work.
- surgeon/ˈsɜːd͡ʒən/noun · B2The doctor who operates on people in the operating room.
- target/ˈtɑː.ɡɪt/noun · A2The result you are expected to reach.
- task/tɑːsk/noun · A2+One piece of work that needs doing.
- team/ˈtiːm/noun · A1A group of people working or playing together toward one goal.
- team leadnoun · B2The person guiding a small working group.
- tenure/ˈtɛn.jʊə/noun · C1The permanent job security a professor earns.
- time off in lieunoun · C1Hours off given instead of extra pay.
- trainee/tɹeɪˈni/noun · B2+A person still learning the job while doing it.
- training/ˈtɹeɪnɪŋ/noun · A2+Organized learning that prepares you to do a job well.
- translator/ˈtɹænzleɪtɚ/noun · B2A person who turns words from one language into another.
- tribunal/tɹaɪˈbjunəl/noun · C1A special court set up to judge one kind of dispute.
- turnover/ˈtɝnoʊvɚ/noun · C1The total money a business takes in; also how fast staff come and go.
- unemployed/ˌʌnɪmˈplɔɪd/adjective · B1+Having no job, though you want one.
- unfair dismissalnoun · C1Being sacked without lawful reason.
- union/ˈjuː.njən/noun · B1The organization workers join to defend their rights together.
- union representativenoun · B2The worker chosen to speak for colleagues.
- vacancy/ˈveɪkənsi/noun · B1+An open job waiting for someone to fill it.
- vet/vɛt/noun · B1The animal doctor.
- vocation/vəʊˈkeɪʃən/noun · C1The work you feel born to do — a calling, not just a job.
- volunteer/ˌvɒl(ə)nˈtɪə/noun · B1A person who works for free to help others.
- wage/weɪd͡ʒ/noun · B2Money paid for work by the hour or by the day.
- wage gapphrase · C1The difference in pay between two groups doing similar work.
- waiter/ˈweɪ̯təː/noun · A2+The person who brings your food to the table in a restaurant.
- walkoutnoun · B2+Leaving work suddenly as a protest.
- whistleblowingnoun · C1Reporting wrongdoing inside your own organisation.
- work/wɜː(ɹ)k/verb · A1To do your job, at an office or anywhere else.
- work to rulephrase · C2Doing exactly what the rules require and no more.
- work-life balance/ˈwɜː(ɹ)k ˈlaɪf ˈbæləns/noun · B2How well your job and your life fit together.
- workaholicnoun · B2+A person who cannot stop working, even when they should.
- workforce/ˈwɝk.foɹs/noun · B2+All the people working in a company or a country together.
- workloadnoun · B2+The total amount of tasks one person is expected to handle.
- zero hoursadjective · C1An agreement with no guaranteed work at all.