More Speak English Like an American » Lesson 11: Gourmet International Talks Strategy
Example: We're losing sales. Let's get the new ad campaign underway immediately.
Example: The global economic conference got underway today in Washington.
Example: Ellen's son plays the guitar and sings for hours every night. He's a wannabe rock star.
Example: Have a muffin. I baked them from scratch.
Example: Brandon threw out the college essay he was working on and started a new one from scratch.
Example: Levi's has come out with a new line of "eco jeans" made from organic cotton.
Example: Jacob loves his new iPod. He thinks it's the greatest thing since sliced bread.
Note: This expression refers to the convenience of buying bread pre-sliced rather than having to slice the loaf yourself at home. This was considered an exciting new product when it was first available in the USA in 1928.
Example: Some people liked Bob's speech, but in all honesty, I thought it was too long.
Example: Dennis just retired and is looking for something to do with his free time. Doing volunteer work may be just the ticket.
Example: Laura is so time-crunched, she doesn't have time to go to the mall anymore. She buys all of her clothes online.
Example: "I'm having 12 people over for dinner tonight, and I haven't started cooking yet." - "You'd better get cracking!"
Example: Do you know when Sheryl Crow's new CD is going to hit the shelves?
Example: I was going to give you the details of our new advertising campaign, but Heather beat me to the punch.
Example: Your computer isn't working? Call Boris. He's our go-to guy for technology problems.
Note: The female equivalent is the "go-to gal."
Example: Our company is starting an online newsletter to keep our customers in the loop about our new products.
Example: You need that report by tomorrow morning? I'll get right on that!
Choose the best substitute for the phrase or sentence in bold:
Mark shares the news about Grand Foods' plans. Ron likes their idea of packaging the food in meal kits and says their company should do the same.
Ron: Mark, let's get this meeting underway with your news.
Mark: Grand Foods is buying Fu Dong foods, a food company in China, and introducing two new products: Moo Shu Port and Princess Chicken.
Steve: How will they be packaged?
Mark: In meal kits.
Sara: Those kits for wannabe cooks where the ingredients come in separate pouches* and then you put them all together?
Ron: Yes, it makes people feel like they're actually cooking from scratch. It's a great concept.
Mark: When I suggested we come out with meal kits last year, you said it was a bad idea. Now you think they're the greatest thing since sliced bread!
Ron: In all honesty, I don't remember talking about meal kits with you last year.
Steve: It seems to me these meal kits are just the ticket for today's time-crunched consumer!
Ron: Let's get cracking on our own meal kits. If we act fast, maybe we can get our meal kits out before Grand Foods' hit the shelves.
Steve: It would be great to beat them to the punch!
Ron: We should set up a meeting with Jeff Torres. He's our go-to guy for new products.
Sara: We'd better get manufacturing in the loop, too.
Ron: Right. We also need more information one Grand Foods is planning. Mark, get right on that!
If you already speak some English and now would like to speak more like a native, “Speak English Like an American” will help you. One of the keys to speaking like a native is the ability to use and understand casual expressions, or idioms. American English is full of idioms. Speak English Like an American will help you understand and use idioms better. It contains over 300 of today's most common idioms.
Speak Business English Like An American covers over 350 idioms and expressions you're likely to encounter in today's business world. Familiarize yourself with all of them.
English idioms, proverbs, and expressions are an important part of everyday English. They come up all the time in both written and spoken English. Because idioms don't always make sense literally, you'll need to familiarize yourself with the meaning and usage of each idiom. That may seem like a lot of work, but learning idioms is fun, especially when you compare English idioms to the idioms in your own language.