10 Slang Expressions For Business That Everyone Should Know

As a tech or business professional, you will often come across (= see/encounter) slang and business idioms in everyday work communication.

Business slang is words, jargon phrases, and idioms that help you sound more casual and emotive. Use slang in semi-formal meetings and chat communication, especially when your goal is to build rapport and foster (= create) a welcoming, friendly environment.

With that said, let’s dive into 10 popular slang expressions for corporate and general business communication.

1. Get the hang of (something)

Meaning: To understand and become comfortable with something.

It took me a while, but I finally got the hang of this new interface.

2. Bump up

Meaning: to increase something, such as level of priority, price, or standard of performance.

We need to bump up the task of cross-platform compatibility because it’s a big priority for our client.

3. Play around with

Meaning: To experiment or explore something

I’ll play around with different layouts and see what works best for our website.

4. That said

Meaning: This phrase is often used to contrast what you said previously or provide additional context on the topic. It’s a short form of “With that said…”

The initial testing showed promising results for the algorithm’s efficiency. That said, we need to conduct further stress testing to ensure its scalability.

5. Go back and forth

Meaning: Exchange messages or ideas. This phrase sometimes has a negative connotation “to spend too much time talking and not making progress”.

We went back and forth over email and reached a decision after a week-long discussion.

6. Get (something) out of the way

Meaning: To deal with issues or questions.

Now that we got that issue out of the way, let’s focus on our priorities for the upcoming sprint.

7. Bandwidth

Meaning: When it refers to people, the word “bandwidth” means resources or mental energy to handle tasks and responsibilities.

I’d love to take on an extra project but I don’t have the bandwidth right now with my current workload.

8. Above my pay grade

Meaning: A decision or task that is beyond your responsibility or expertise.

I can’t approve that budget proposal, that’s above my pay grade.

9. A long shot

Meaning: Something that is not likely to succeed.

Landing that client is a long shot, but we can try.

10. Up in the air

Meaning: Uncertain or undecided.

The future of the project is up in the air as we’re still waiting for approval from the stakeholders.

Want to learn and practice more useful vocabulary for real-life tech communication? Check out our English For Tech course.

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