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💼 Work & Careers Vocabulary

Part 1: Career Collocations

Collocations are words that naturally go together. Master these to talk about work like a professional!

Essential Career Collocations

Collocation Example Meaning
career path "I'm planning my career path carefully." Professional development route
office politics "I try to avoid office politics." Workplace power dynamics
job security "Job security is important to me." Stability of employment
work-life balance "She has great work-life balance." Harmony between work and personal life
professional development "The company offers professional development." Career skill improvement
networking opportunities "This event has great networking opportunities." Chances to make professional connections

💡 Usage Tips:

Career path - Your planned professional journey

Office politics - Usually has negative connotations

Job security - How safe your job is from being lost

Practice: Collocations

Exercise 1: Complete the collocations

1. I need to plan my path.
2. I hate politics.
3. security is very important.
4. She has excellent work- balance.
5. This conference offers great opportunities.

Part 2: Work & Career Idioms

Idioms are expressions with meanings different from the literal words. These work idioms are essential for professional English!

Common Work Idioms:

  • Climb the ladder - Get promoted/advance in career
    "She's really climbing the ladder quickly."
  • Dead-end job - Job with no advancement opportunities
    "I'm stuck in a dead-end job."
  • Learn the ropes - Learn how to do a job
    "It takes time to learn the ropes."
  • Think outside the box - Be creative/innovative
    "We need to think outside the box."
  • Get the sack - Be fired
    "He got the sack for being late."
  • Pull your weight - Do your fair share of work
    "Everyone needs to pull their weight."
  • Cut corners - Do something cheaply/quickly
    "Don't cut corners on this project."
  • Back to the drawing board - Start over
    "This didn't work - back to the drawing board!"

Practice: Idioms

Exercise 2: Complete the idioms

1. She's climbing the quickly.
2. This is a dead- job.
3. It takes time to learn the .
4. We need to think outside the .
5. He got the for being late.

Part 3: Work & Career Phrasal Verbs

Phrasal verbs are verbs combined with prepositions or adverbs that create new meanings!

Phrasal Verb Meaning Example
take on Accept responsibility/hire "I'll take on this project."
burn out Become exhausted from work "Don't burn out from overwork."
move up Get promoted "She moved up to manager."
step down Resign from position "The CEO stepped down."
carry out Complete a task "We need to carry out this plan."
hand in Submit work/resign "Please hand in your report."
work out Solve/calculate "Let's work out the budget."
lay off Make redundant "The company laid off 50 workers."

Practice: Phrasal Verbs

Exercise 3: Complete with the correct phrasal verb

1. I'll on this new project.
2. Don't out from overwork.
3. She up to senior manager.
4. Please in your resignation.
5. Let's out the solution.

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💼 Excellent! Now you can talk about work and careers like a professional!