在你的工作环境里,你能否在和英语有关的事情上保持领先？或是你觉得你的语言学习已经落后了？英语是全世界的商务语言，但并不是全部那么简单易懂的。这里有一些名词你也许在办公室听过。

Can you stay on top of all the English at your workplace? Or do you feel you are behind in your language learning? English is the international business language, but not all of it is straightforward¹. Here are some terms you might hear at your office.

Stay on top of

如果工作让你力不从心，或许你已经没有保持领先了。这就意味着你仅仅可以维持你的工作，不至于让工作落后或是累积成山。

Stay on top of

If you are feeling overwhelmed in your job, you are probably not staying on top of your work. This means to stay in control, and not get behind or let your work pile up.

On the ball

这个短语来自于运动场。当你on the ball，你必须要警觉并处于掌控制地位。"Make sure you are on the ball with those reports." 相反的是 drop the ball，意思是你没有完成任务并让和你一起工作的人失望了。

On the ball

This phrase comes from the sports field. When you are on the ball, you have to be alert and in charge. "Make sure you are on the ball with those reports." The opposite is to drop the ball, which would mean not completing an assignment and letting down the people you work with.

Think outside the box

许多的雇主希望他们的员工能够创新并用不同的方式完成项目。 在这个短语中，the box代表着传统的智慧，或众所周知的东西。这句短语意思是想出新的革新的方法。"For this marketing² project, we need to think outside the box."

Think outside the box

Many employers expect their staff to think creatively and approach projects in new and different ways. In this phrase, the box signifies conventional wisdom, or what is already known. Thinking outside the box suggests coming up with new and innovative³ methods. "For this marketing project, we need to think outside the box."

Get the ball rolling

这句谚语意思是开始某事并使之运作起来。"Let's get the ball rolling on this project."一旦你有个良好的开端，你可能通过使用keep the ball rolling.表示你的意愿。

Get the ball rolling

This idiom means to start something and set it in motion. "Let's get the ball rolling on this project." Once you're off to a great start, you may express your desire to keep the ball rolling.

Brainstorm⁴

这意味着花时间想很多的注意。许多的公司会召开brainstorming sessions来应对问题并构思新的想法。"Let's brainstorm new ideas for the advertising⁶ campaign."

Brainstorm

This means to spend time thinking up lots of ideas. Many companies may hold brainstorming⁵ sessions to tackle problems and dream up new ideas. "Let's brainstorm new ideas for the advertising campaign."

Pull strings⁷

如果你拉一个木偶的线会怎么样呢？木偶会按你的想的做。这个短语意思是做超出平常的可能的事让某事发生。"It will be difficult to talk with her. You may have to pull some strings with her department."

Pull strings

What happens when you pull the strings to a puppet? It does what you want it to do. This phrase means to go beyond what is normally done to make something happen. "It will be difficult to talk with her. You may have to pull some strings with her department."

Multi-tasking

你是否擅长于multi-tasking或在同一时间完成多项任务？ "This week we need you to write a report, make a presentation, and review last year's earnings⁸. I hope you can multi-task!" 尽管你拿到的薪水还是同样的那份！

Multi-tasking

Are you good at multi-tasking or doing multiple tasks at the same time? "This week we need you to write a report, make a presentation, and review last year's earnings. I hope you can multi-task!" It still means you only get paid one salary though!

Bite off more than you can chew

如果你接受了太多的工作，你可能就不能正常的完成。"He's working late every night. He bit off more than he could chew."

Bite off more than you can chew

If you take on too much work, you may not be able to do it all properly. "He's working late every night. He bit off more than he could chew."

Downtime

会不会有时候没有多少工作要做？或者你的工作只是不象以前那样忙？这样的时段就称作downtime。"If you have some downtime this week, please brainstorm some ideas for our next team outing

Downtime

Are there periods of time where you don't have much work to do? Where your job is just not as busy? That time is called downtime. "If you have some downtime this week, please brainstorm some ideas for our next team outing."