EFE learning modules / Workplace Communication

Workplace Communication @ Managing formal meetings, writing professional emails, and using appropriate business language with colleagues.

Common Expressions Back to Catalog

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To be on the same page

/ቱ ቢ ኦን ዘ ሴም ፔጅ/

በአንድ ሃሳብ መስማማት

To have the same understanding or agreement.

ስለ አንድ ነገር ተመሳሳይ ግንዛቤ ወይም ስምምነት መኖር።

In Practice

"We need a meeting to ensure we are all on the same page."
"Before we email the client, let's make sure we are on the same page."
Fluent Tip

Used in meetings to confirm mutual understanding.

To touch base

/ቱ ታች ቤዝ/

ለመገናኘት ወይም ለመነጋገር

To briefly make contact with someone.

ከአንድ ሰው ጋር ለአጭር ጊዜ መገናኘት ወይም መረጃ መለዋወጥ።

In Practice

"I will touch base with you after the meeting."
"Let's touch base next week to discuss the progress."
Fluent Tip

Common in professional emails for follow-ups.

To cut to the chase

/ቱ ካት ቱ ዘ ቼዝ/

ወደ ዋናው ነጥብ መግባት

To get to the point without wasting time.

ጊዜ ሳያባክኑ ወደ ዋናው ጉዳይ መግባት።

In Practice

"Let's cut to the chase and discuss the budget."
"I don't have much time, so please cut to the chase."
Fluent Tip

Used in meetings to save time.

To stay ahead of the curve

/ቱ ስቴይ አሄድ ኦፍ ዘ ከርቭ/

ቀድሞ መገኘት ወይም መራመድ

To maintain a position of advantage.

ከሌሎች ቀድሞ ጠቃሚ በሆነ ሁኔታ ላይ መቆየት።

In Practice

"We must innovate to stay ahead of the curve."
"The company is investing in AI to stay ahead of the curve."
Fluent Tip

Used in strategic business discussions.

To keep someone in the loop

/ቱ ኪፕ ሰምዋን ኢን ዘ ሉፕ/

መረጃ እንዲደርሰው ማድረግ

To keep someone informed about a situation.

አንድ ሰው ስለ ሁኔታው ሁልጊዜ መረጃ እንዲኖረው ማድረግ።

In Practice

"Please keep me in the loop regarding the project."
"She was kept in the loop during the entire process."
Fluent Tip

Common in emails and project management.

To play hardball

/ቱ ፕሌይ ሃርድቦል/

ጠንከር ያለ አቋም መያዝ

To act in a tough and uncompromising way.

በድርድር ወቅት በጣም ጥብቅ እና የማይለዋወጥ አቋም መያዝ።

In Practice

"They are playing hardball during the negotiations."
"We might need to play hardball to get this deal done."
Fluent Tip

Used in high-stakes negotiations.

To hit the nail on the head

/ቱ ሂት ዘ ኔል ኦን ዘ ሄድ/

ትክክለኛውን ነገር መናገር

To describe exactly what is causing a situation.

የችግሩን ወይም የሁኔታውን ትክክለኛ መንስኤ መግለጽ።

In Practice

"You hit the nail on the head with that analysis."
"His comment really hit the nail on the head."
Fluent Tip

Used to agree with a colleague's point.

To move the needle

/ቱ ሙቭ ዘ ኒድል/

ጉልህ ለውጥ ማምጣት

To make a significant difference.

በአንድ ነገር ላይ የሚታይ ለውጥ መፍጠር።

In Practice

"We need a strategy that will really move the needle."
"This marketing campaign didn't move the needle much."
Fluent Tip

Used when discussing business growth or impact.

To put on the back burner

/ቱ ፑት ኦን ዘ ባክ በርነር/

ለጊዜው ማቆየት (ቅድሚያ አለመስጠት)

To give something low priority.

ለአንድ ጉዳይ ዝቅተኛ ቅድሚያ መስጠት ወይም ለጊዜው ማቆየት።

In Practice

"We'll put that project on the back burner for now."
"Let's put this discussion on the back burner until next month."
Fluent Tip

Used for prioritizing tasks.

To get the ball rolling

/ቱ ጌት ዘ ቦል ሮሊንግ/

ስራውን ማስጀመር

To set an activity in motion.

አንድን ተግባር ወይም ስራ ማስጀመር።

In Practice

"Who wants to get the ball rolling on this task?"
"We need to get the ball rolling to meet the deadline."
Fluent Tip

Used at the start of a meeting or project.

To think outside the box

/ቱ ቲንክ አውትሳይድ ዘ ቦክስ/

ከተለመደው ውጭ ማሰብ

To think creatively or unconventionally.

ፈጠራ የታከለበት ወይም ከተለመደው የተለየ ሃሳብ ማመንጨት።

In Practice

"We need to think outside the box to solve this."
"Her ability to think outside the box is a great asset."
Fluent Tip

Common in brainstorming sessions.

To wrap up

/ቱ ራፕ አፕ/

ማጠቃለል

To finish or conclude something.

አንድን ነገር መጨረስ ወይም ማጠቃለል።

In Practice

"Let's wrap up this meeting in five minutes."
"I need to wrap up this report before I leave."
Fluent Tip

Used to end meetings or finish tasks.