Business Idioms connected to food
It’s not surprising really that there are so many business idioms connected to food, food is something that we need and probably love! Here is a selection of these idioms that you will definitely hear in the British English speaking workplace!
1) In a nutshell
Meaning: Using as few words as possible
Example: “In a nutshell, we will run out of cash in three months time if we don’t increase our sales by 30%”
2) Hard nut to crack
Meaning: A difficult problem or a difficult person
Example: “How can we increase sales during a recession? It’s a hard nut to crack!”
3) Put all one’s eggs in one basket
Meaning: Rely on one thing to bring success .
Example: “It’s not a good idea to rely on the domestic market and put all our eggs in one basket“
4) Low-hanging fruit
Meaning: Easy tasks, the most easily achieved of a set of tasks, measures, goals, etc.
Example: “This marketing campaign was a success. Now sales should focus on the low hanging fruit and close as many deals as possible”.
5) Sell like hot cakes
Meaning: Sell quickly and in large quantities.
Example: “The new products are selling like hot cakes!”
6) Bite off more than you can chew
Meaning: Try to do more than one is capable of doing.
Example: “That’s a huge project. Are you sure you want to be in charge? Don’t bite off more than you can chew!”
7) Too many cooks spoil the broth
Meaning: A project works best if there is input from a limited number of people.
Example: “I would’ve loved to have joined the project but you already have too many people on board and you know that too many cooks spoil the broth!”
8) Take with a grain of salt
Meaning: Be a bit sceptical about it. Only believe part of it.
Example: “Their top sales person is very charming but you need to take what she says with a grain of salt because she tends to exaggerate!”
9) The icing on the cake
Meaning: Something that makes a good situation even better.
Example: “I love my job, and getting that unexpected bonus was the icing on the cake!”
10) Food for thought
Meaning: Something worth thinking seriously about.
Example: “Thank you for your great marketing suggestions – it gave us a lot of food for thought“
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