II. Here are some materials subject to the definitions of Business English and its vocabulary. Hope they will help you within your studies and future working process.

WHAT IS BUSINESS ENGLISH?

A standard definition reads as follows: Business English is the language used in business contexts. This way of defining Business English is quit acceptable, but it is too general and fails to unravel the mystery of Business English in order to get an idea of the scope of things included and understand the intrinsic mechanism of the language used as a means of written and spoken communication in the world of business. In reality there is no formal scheme of business language. It can be subdivided into the so called sub-languages (or registers) with their own peculiarities. Different registers (Socializing, Telephoning, Business correspondence, Business meetings, Presentations, Negotiating and Quality press etc.) performed different functions. For effective business communications in speech and writing businessmen have to switch from one register to another. It follows, then, that in the reality of business situation, Business English can hardly be reduced in the only register. It embraces a number of them. They merge and interact within a global whole called business communication. The interplay of registers in Business English is symbiotic. The adjective symbiotic is derived from the noun symbiosis which denotes the relationship between several things that depend on each other for particular advantages (Longman dictionary of contemporary English).

Registers constitute a global whole to be viewed in its natural complexity. To better understand the actual mechanism of human interaction in the world of business, the symbiotic interplay of registers should be analyzed, or dissected, into separate entities. Every register should be treated individually. On the other hand, the inner structure and coherence of the particular register should be discovered and described in detail. This aspect of the approach should be referred to as intrinsic order (разнообразие «по природе»). On the other hand, practicable-oriented methodologies should be elaborated to demonstrate how this or that register of Business English can, and should, be taught. This aspect is covered by the term arbitrary order (порядок «по установлению»). The former – intrinsic order – deals with inherent diversity and complexity. The latter – arbitrary order – aims at optimization and sequencing for the purpose of ongoing language acquisition. The register-based definition gives an idea of the range of coverage represented by Business English. It approximates the natural complexity of business communication and points, in no uncertain terms, to the independence of various functional uses. S0, taking into account all above-mentioned information Business English can be defined as a symbiotic interplay of registers (e.g. Socializing, Telephoning, Business correspondence, Business meetings, Presentations, Negotiating and Quality press); a set of written and oral skills used for business communication (взаимообусловленное единство разных регистров (например, тех­ника ведения беседы, общение по телефону в деловых целях, дело­вая корреспонденция, деловая встреча, презентация, техника ве­дения переговоров и качествен­ная пресса); совокупность устных и письменных навыков общения в деловых целях). The key element of Business English is its vocabulary.

 

BUSINESS ENGLISH VOCABULARY

THEY SAID: Learning vocabulary is a very important part of learning English. … Good business English means having a big vocabulary! (Flower J. 1990)

 

Vocabulary is at the core of Business English proficiency: without well-organized and ongoing vocabulary extension one will never become a confident user of spoken and written English as means of business communication. It should be mentioned, however, that the range and structure of Business English vocabulary is an issue which many authors in the field trend to avoid. At best, business vocabulary is taken for granted, with surprisingly little effort put into discussing its current status, outlining its boundaries or analyzing it into the correspondent strata. Without the latter, there is no communication, and without communication, no business transaction is possible. What exactly is Business English vocabulary?

General English Words

First come words and phrases that are borrowed by Business English from General English. They are frequently used both in everyday situations and in business settings, for example: to come across, in advance, let alone, to go along with, on behalf of, quit a bit, by the way, if by any chance, to take into account, to take care of, etc. They serve both types of communication and, in general, form the core resources that cut across numerous situations where English is used as a means of spoken and written interaction. They will be referred to as General English words (общего языка). General English words and phrases are used in other registers of Business English. Their amount will vary from register to register.