SCHOOL OF ECONOMICS

BUSINESS ENGLISH PROGRAM

ENGLISH V
PRACTICE

STUDENT’S ID
NAME NUMBER

Task 1 Complete these sentences with the correct form of the verbs from the box

A. Write the verbs from the box under the correct prefix to make words connected with change

assess centralize date develop grade launch

locate regulate size structure train

Down- De- Up- Re-

organize

1. Following the merger, the office layout was ________________________________ to accommodate the
new staff.
2. The most successful change in our company was the decision to
________________________________company. Now there is more opportunity for promotion.
3. It is now so expensive to rent offices in the city center that many companies
are________________________________ their operations to purpose-built business parks at the city limits.
4. The company has recently________________________________ its workforce. Reducing the number of
employees is the best way to stay profitable in the current economic climate.
5. To improve efficiency, the company has introduced new working practices. The HR
department will ________________________________ all sales staff.
6. One of our products hasn't been selling well recently. The marketing team has
decided to take it off the market and________________________________ it next year with new packaging.
7. The IT department report recommended that the company ________________________________ the
computer
system as soon as possible.
8. The CEO thinks that too many decisions are made at Head Office. She wants
to___________________________ the decision-making process so that branch managers are more involved
at an earlier stage.
9. The company has finalized the plans to________________________________ the disused car-park site.
It is going to become a fitness center for employees.
10. The logo and slogan are very old-fashioned. We need to ________________________________ the
whole image of the product and bring it into the 21st century________________________________
11. There is a lot of pressure on the government from consumer groups to ___________________________
the industry and remove controls, so customers can benefit from increased competition.
12. Following the report by the legal department and changes in the tax laws, the management decided to
________________________________ the situation and delay making a decision on the takeover
 2
Task 2 Complete each set of sentences with the same verb describing change from the box in
the correct form. There are four verbs you will not need.
deregulate downsize reassess redevelop relocate restructure retrain update
upgrade

1. The current economic climate is making people _________________________________all of the purchases

they make.
When will the government _____________________________the impact of their economic reforms on the
quality of life?
We need to _________________________________ the situation before making any decisions.
2. If your company_________________________________________________ and you are over 50, your
working life may be over.
As the car industry _____________________________many are leaving the country in search of work.
Breaking news: TRN United, the global electronics group ____________________________its workforce by
20%.
3. Could you perhaps ______________________________________us on how the project is progressing?
We continuously _______________________________________the files with new information.
We plan to ____________________________________________ our telephone system.

4. The government will soon _______________________ all internal flights, so the industry will probably
become more competitive.
They plan to__________________________________ the capital markets and privatize most state-owned
companies.
Taiwan's government pledged to _________________________________________________ its service
sector within four years.
5. We bought new software and had to
______________________________________________________everyone to use the database.
Our agency has seen a huge increase in the number of adults looking to change careers, either as a result of
job loss or a desire to _____________________________ in a different field.
People are often reluctant to ________________________________________ until they are convinced that
their present skills are not sufficient to enable them to find work.

Task 3 Verbs that indicate change: classify the verbs in the chart.

PLUMMET SOAR BOOM

PEAK DROP JUMP
ROCKET FLUCTUATE SKYROCKET
LEVEL OUT FALL COLLAPSE
DECREASE DECLINE PLUNGE
RISE GO UP GO BURST
INCREASE GO DOWN
VERBS THAT INDICATE VERBS THAT INDICATE VERBS THAT INDICATE

Analyze the following graph. Then, write 5 sentences regarding this graph using correctly verbs of
Task 4
change (5 different verbs), prepositions (to, by, of, at), and different verb forms (past simple and
present perfect).

Task 5 Complete the sentences with words from the box the words _
Equity stake Recession Shares Debt Stock market Forecast

_____________________ equal parts into which the capital or ownership of a company is divided
_____________________ a period of time when business activity decreases because the economy is doing badly
_____________________money risked when a business owns part of another company
_____________________ a place where company shares are bought and sold
_____________________ a description of what is likely to happen in the future
_____________________ money owed by one person or organisation to another person or organisation

Task 6
Match the sentence halves

1 Profit margin is a) a part of a company's profits paid to the owners of shares.

2 Investment is b) the difference between the price of a product or service and the cost of producing
it.
3 Bankruptcy is c) money which people or organizations put into a business to
make a profit.
4 A dividend is d) the amount of money which a business obtains (in a year) from customers by
selling goods or services.
5 Pre-tax profits are e) when a person or organization is unable to pay their debts.
6 Annual turnover is f) the money a business makes before payment to the government
1 ( ) 2 ( )3 ( ) 4 ( ) 5 ( ) 6 ( )
Task 7 Complete with the words from task 5 and 6
And now the business news ...
There was a further downturn in the economy this month as the _____________________________ in the
United States and Asia-Pacific region continues. Yesterday was another day of heavy trading on the
________________________________________. with big losses in share values. The _______________________' for the
near future is not good. as market confidence remains low.

Paradise Lane. the struggling luxury hotel group. is seeking new _____________________________to try and
avoid ______________________________following the announcement of disastrous interim results. It currently
has a __________________________________ of nearly $5 billion. There are rumours of rivals GHN taking a
large_____________________________________ in the troubled hotel group.
Phoenix Media announced a 15% increase in ____________________________ on an ______________________________
of $4.5 million.
Added to the strong performance in the last quarter. this is likely to result in an
increased__________________________________ of over 14 cents per share. well up on last year. which will certainly
please shareholders·. Following a rise in sales in the emerging markets of ________________________________the people
who own shares in a business.
Task 8
Match the concepts with their definitions

1 Gross margin Amount of capital that is injected to generate profits.

2 Recession Amount of monetary capital is owed to a person or organization.

3 Shares Economic participation in a company or economic sector.

4 Debt Income received by a company in exchange for products or services.

5 Stock market Institution in charge of exchanging shares.

6 Investment Prediction based on the economic conditions of a market.

7 Earnings per share Relationship established between the production cost and sales price of a product.

8 Forecast Status of permanent closure with inability to pay debts or functioning costs.

9 Bankruptcy Total quantity of profits divided into the number of shares.

10 Revenues Unstable economic period for a society or economic sector.