There’s a language we seem to develop once we enter the working world. It starts with hearing someone say a phrase in a meeting, then another person uses it in an email, and before you know it, you’re saying it too. Somewhere along the way, ordinary sentences become slightly more complicated, conversations become "discussions", and doing something later becomes "circling back".
Corporate jargon has become a part of working life that most of us barely notice we're using it anymore. We say things like "let's touch base" without thinking twice. We "align" on things, "action" tasks and "deep dive" into projects. Even saying you're busy can be replaced with being "at capacity".
And while some of these expressions are genuinely useful, others have become so overused that they can feel almost comical. The more we hear them, the more we start questioning what they actually mean.
Despite our collective eye-rolling, corporate jargon isn't disappearing anytime soon. Here are some of the phrases that have made their way into office vocabulary, and what we're really saying when we use them.
"Table this"
A phrase that sounds straightforward until you realise it can mean different things depending on where you're working. In some workplaces, "table this" means to put something forward for discussion. In others, it can mean postponing the discussion.
"Quick sync"
A quick sync is usually a short meeting to make sure everyone is on the same page, although "quick" can be doing a lot of heavy lifting. Five minutes can easily become 45, especially when someone starts with, "While I've got everyone here..."
"Skin in the game"
This is corporate speak for having something personally at stake. It suggests that someone is more invested in an outcome because they stand to gain or lose something from it.
"Action items"
Actioning an item means assigning a task to someone, but giving it a corporate title makes it sound more official. Suddenly, sending an email isn't just sending an email. It's an action item with an owner and a deadline.
"Move the needle"
This phrase is usually used when someone wants to talk about making a meaningful difference. If something is going to "move the needle", it's expected to have a noticeable impact on a goal. The needle is rarely specified, but everyone is expected to know which one is being moved.
"Back burner"
This is a slightly more palatable way of saying, "We're not dealing with this right now." Putting something on the back burner means deprioritising it temporarily while something more urgent takes centre stage. The phrase has also made a successful escape from the office, making its way into conversations about everything from weekend plans to personal projects.
"Low-hanging fruit"
"Low-hanging fruit" refers to something that can be achieved with relatively little effort, making it an obvious place to start when you're trying to make progress. It's useful when you want to suggest doing the easiest thing first without actually saying, "Let's do the easy thing first."
"Boil the ocean"
A way of saying someone is trying to do far too much at once. To "boil the ocean" is to take on an unnecessarily large or unrealistic task instead of focusing on something more manageable.
"Run it up the flagpole"
An elaborate way of saying, "Let's see what people think." If you're going to "run something up the flagpole", you're putting an idea forward to gauge the reaction before committing to it. It can be a useful way of testing an idea.
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