Business

Asking price

barcode

bar • code / BrE ˈbɑːkəʊd ; NAmE ˈbɑːrkoʊd / noun a pattern of thick and thin lines that is printed on things you buy. It contains information that a computer can read.

bid

bid 1 / BrE bɪd ; NAmE bɪd / verb, noun 1 ~ (for sth) an offer by a person or a company to pay a particular amount of money for sth Granada mounted a hostile takeover bid for Forte. At the auction (= a public sale where things are sold to the person who offers the most) , the highest bid for the picture was £200. Any more bids?

bid (2)

bid 1 / BrE bɪd ; NAmE bɪd / verb, noun 1 [ I ,  T ] to offer to pay a particular price for sth, especially at an auction ~ (sth) (for sth) I bid £2 000 for the painting. ~ (against sb) We wanted to buy the chairs but another couple were bidding against us.

cash and carry

ˌcash and ˈcarry / BrE ; NAmE / noun [ C ,  U ] a large wholesale shop/store that sells goods in large quantities at low prices to customers from other businesses who pay in cash and take the goods away themselves; the system of buying and selling goods in this way

cashback

cash • back ( BrE ) ( US cash-back ) / BrE ˈkæʃbæk ; NAmE ˈkæʃbæk / noun 1 [ U ] if you ask for cashback when you are paying for goods in a shop/store with a debit card (= a plastic card that takes money directly from your bank account) , you get a sum of money in cash, that is added to your bill Would you like cashback? Customers are allowed up to £30 cashback on each purchase.

Change

change / BrE tʃeɪndʒ ; NAmE tʃeɪndʒ / verb, noun 5 [ U ] the money that you get back when you have paid for sth giving more money than the amount it costs Don't forget your change! That's 40p change. The ticket machine gives change.

Change (2)

change / BrE tʃeɪndʒ ; NAmE tʃeɪndʒ / verb, noun 6 [ U ] coins rather than paper money Do you have any change for the phone? a dollar in change (= coins that together are worth one dollar) I didn't have any small change (= coins of low value) to leave as a tip. He puts his loose change in a money box for the children. Could you give me change for a ten pound note (= coins or notes that are worth this amount) ?

Cheque

cheque ( BrE ) ( US check ) / BrE tʃek ; NAmE tʃek / noun a printed form that you can write on and sign as a way of paying for sth instead of using money a cheque for £50 to write a cheque to make a cheque out to sb to pay by cheque to cash a cheque (= to get or give money for a cheque) see also blank cheque , traveller's cheque

circulation

cir • cu • la • tion / BrE ˌsɜːkjəˈleɪʃn ; NAmE ˌsɜːrkjəˈleɪʃn / noun 2 [ U ] the passing or spreading of sth from one person or place to another the circulation of money/information/ideas A number of forged tickets are in circulation . The coins were taken out of circulation . Copies of the magazine were withdrawn from circulation . putting computer viruses into circulation

Credit

credit / BrE ˈkredɪt ; NAmE ˈkredɪt / noun, verb 1 [ U ] an arrangement that you make, with a shop/store for example, to pay later for sth you buy to get/refuse credit We bought the dishwasher on credit . to offer interest-free credit (= allow sb to pay later, without any extra charge) a credit agreement credit facilities/terms Your credit limit is now £2 000. He's a bad credit risk (= he is unlikely to pay the money later) . compare hire purchase

Credit note

ˈcredit note / BrE ; NAmE / noun ( BrE ) a letter that a shop/store gives you when you have returned sth and that allows you to have goods of the same value in exchange

debit card

ˈdebit card / BrE ; NAmE / noun a plastic card that can be used to take money directly from your bank account when you pay for sth compare credit card

Denomination

de • nom • in • ation / BrE dɪˌnɒmɪˈneɪʃn ; NAmE dɪˌnɑːmɪˈneɪʃn / noun ( formal ) 2 a unit of value, especially of money coins and banknotes of various denominations

Disposable

dis • pos • able / BrE dɪˈspəʊzəbl ; NAmE dɪˈspoʊzəbl / adj. [ usually before noun ] 2 ( finance ) available for use disposable assets/capital/resources a person's disposable income (= money they are free to spend after paying taxes, etc.)

downpayment

ˌdown ˈpayment / BrE ; NAmE / noun a sum of money that is given as the first part of a larger payment We are saving for a down payment on a house.

duty-free

ˌduty-ˈfree / BrE ; NAmE / adj. ( of goods ) that you can bring into a country without paying tax on them duty-free cigarettes ˌduty-ˈfree adv. You're allowed 1½ litres of spirits duty-free. ˌduty-ˈfree noun : ( BrE , informal ) We bought a load of duty-frees (= duty-free goods) at the airport.

mark up

mark • up / BrE ˈmɑːkʌp ; NAmE ˈmɑːrkkʌp / noun 1 [ usually sing. ] an increase in the price of sth based on the difference between the cost of producing it and the price it is sold at an average markup of 10% The markup on food in a restaurant is at least 100%.

part exchange

ˌpart exˈchange / BrE ; NAmE / noun [ U ] ( BrE ) a way of buying sth, such as a car, in which you give the old one as part of the payment for a more expensive one We'll take your car in part exchange . ˌpart-exˈchange / BrE ; NAmE / verb ~ sth

pay

pay / BrE peɪ ; NAmE peɪ / verb, noun 1 [ I ,  T ] to give sb money for work, goods, services, etc ~ (for sth) I'll pay for the tickets. Are you paying in cash or by credit card ? My company pays well (= pays high salaries) . ~ for sb to do sth Her parents paid for her to go to Canada. ~ sth to pay cash ~ sth for sth She pays £200 a week for this apartment. ~ sb (for sth) Would you mind paying the taxi driver? ~ sb sth He still hasn't paid me the money he owes me. I'm paid $100 a day. ~ sb/sth to do sth I don't pay you to sit around all day doing nothing! see also low-paid , pre-pay , well paid

Refund

re • fund noun noun / BrE ˈriːfʌnd ; NAmE ˈriːfʌnd / a sum of money that is paid back to you, especially because you paid too much or because you returned goods to a shop/store a tax refund to claim/demand/receive a refund If there is a delay of 12 hours or more, you will receive a full refund of the price of your trip.

Voucher

vouch • er / BrE ˈvaʊtʃə(r) ; NAmE ˈvaʊtʃər / noun a printed piece of paper that can be used instead of money to pay for sth, or that allows you to pay less than the usual price of sth a voucher for a free meal a travel voucher This discount voucher entitles you to 10% off your next purchase. see also luncheon voucher

Wholesale

whole • sale / BrE ˈhəʊlseɪl ; NAmE ˈhoʊlseɪl / adj. [ only before noun ] 1 connected with goods that are bought and sold in large quantities, especially so they can be sold again to make a profit wholesale prices compare retail

Auction

auc • tion / BrE ˈɔːkʃn ; ˈɒkʃn ; NAmE ˈɔːkʃn / noun noun [ C ,  U ] a public event at which things are sold to the person who offers the most money for them an auction of paintings The house is up for auction (= will be sold at an auction ) . A classic Rolls-Royce fetched (= was sold for) £25 000 at auction . an Internet auction site

bargain

bar • gain / BrE ˈbɑːɡən ; NAmE ˈbɑːrɡən / noun noun 1 a thing bought for less than the usual price I picked up a few good bargains in the sale. The car was a bargain at that price. bargain prices 2 ~ (with sb) an agreement between two or more people or groups, to do sth for each other He and his partner had made a bargain to tell each other everything. I've done what I promised and I expect you to keep your side of the bargain (= do what you agreed in return) . Finally the two sides struck a bargain (= reached an agreement) . see drive/strike a hard bargain at hard   adj. , strike a bargain/deal at strike   v.

bargain (v)

bar • gain / BrE ˈbɑːɡən ; NAmE ˈbɑːrɡən / verb verb [ I ] to discuss prices, conditions, etc. with sb in order to reach an agreement that is acceptable negotiate ~ (with sb) (about/over/for sth) In the market dealers were bargaining with growers over the price of coffee. He said he wasn't prepared to bargain.

barter

bar • ter / BrE ˈbɑːtə(r) ; NAmE ˈbɑːrtər / verb [ I ,  T ] to exchange goods, property, services, etc. for other goods, etc. without using money ~ (with sb) (for sth) The prisoners tried to barter with the guards for items like writing paper and books. ~ sth (for sth) The local people bartered wheat for tools. bar • ter noun [ U ] The islanders use a system of barter instead of money.

haggle

hag • gle / BrE ˈhæɡl ; NAmE ˈhæɡl / verb [ I ] ~ (with sb) (over sth) to argue with sb in order to reach an agreement, especially about the price of sth I left him in the market haggling over the price of a shirt. We spent a long time haggling with the authorities over our visas.

Impulse buying

ˈimpulse buying / BrE ; NAmE / noun [ U ] buying goods without planning to do so in advance, and without thinking about it carefully ˈimpulse buy / BrE ; NAmE / noun It was an impulse buy.

mystery shopper

ˌmystery ˈshopper / BrE ; NAmE / noun a person whose job is to visit or telephone a shop/store or other business pretending to be a customer, in order to get information on the quality of the service, the facilities, etc The best way to find out how your company is running is by using a mystery shopper. Stores and restaurants that have many or even thousands of different locations rely on mystery shoppers all over the country, to check every store. Below is a list of companies that hire mystery shoppers to privately investigate their businesses whether it's a retail outlet, restaurant, fast food chain, clothing store or a new movie. ˌmystery ˈshopping / BrE ; NAmE / noun [ U ] Today, mystery shopping is primarily used by businesses to measure their customer service.

spend thrift

spend • thrift / BrE ˈspendθrɪft ; NAmE ˈspendθrɪft / noun ( disapproving ) a person who spends too much money or who wastes money spend • thrift adj. [ usually before noun ] spendthrift governments

splurge

splurge / BrE splɜːdʒ ; NAmE splɜːrdʒ / noun noun [ usually sing. ] ( informal ) an act of spending a lot of money on sth that you do not really need

Splurge (v)

splurge / BrE splɜːdʒ ; NAmE splɜːrdʒ / verb verb [ T ,  I ] ~ (sth) (on sth) ( informal ) to spend a lot of money on sth that you do not really need

Spree

spree / BrE spriː ; NAmE spriː / noun 1 a short period of time that you spend doing one particular activity that you enjoy, but often too much of it a shopping/spending spree He's out on a spree .

buyout

buy • out / BrE ˈbaɪaʊt ; NAmE ˈbaɪaʊt / noun a situation in which a person or group gains control of a company by buying all or most of its shares a management buyout

dissolve

dis • solve / BrE dɪˈzɒlv ; NAmE dɪˈzɑːlv / verb 3 [ T ] ~ sth to officially end a marriage, business agreement or parliament Their marriage was dissolved in 1999. The election was announced and parliament was dissolved.

Hostile

hos • tile / BrE ˈhɒstaɪl ; NAmE ˈhɑːstl ; ˈhɑːstaɪl / adj. 5 ( business ) ( of an offer to buy a company, etc. ) not wanted by the company that is to be bought a hostile takeover bid

leverage

le • ver • age / BrE ˈliːvərɪdʒ ; NAmE ˈlevərɪdʒ / noun, verb 1 ( formal ) the ability to influence what people do diplomatic leverage Retailers can exert leverage over producers by threatening to take their business elsewhere.

Take over

take • over / BrE ˈteɪkəʊvə(r) ; NAmE ˈteɪkoʊvər / noun [ C ,  U ] 1 an act of taking control of a company by buying most of its shares a takeover bid for the company

Agent

agent / BrE ˈeɪdʒənt ; NAmE ˈeɪdʒənt / noun 1 a person whose job is to act for, or manage the affairs of, other people in business, politics, etc an insurance agent Our agent in New York deals with all US sales. If you're going to rent out your house while you're abroad, you'll need someone to act as your agent here. see also estate agent , land agent , travel agent

entrepreneuri

entre • pre • neur / BrE ˌɒntrəprəˈnɜː(r) ; NAmE ˌɑːntrəprəˈnɜːr / noun a person who makes money by starting or running businesses, especially when this involves taking financial risks en • tre • pre • neur • ial / BrE ˌɒntrəprəˈnɜːriəl ; NAmE ˌɑːntrəprəˈnɜːriəl / adj. entrepreneurial skills entre • pre • neur • ship / BrE ; NAmE / noun [ U ]

Magnate

mag • nate / BrE ˈmæɡneɪt ; NAmE ˈmæɡneɪt / noun a person who is rich, powerful and successful, especially in business a media/property/shipping magnate

Oligarch

oli • garch / BrE ˈɒlɪɡɑːk ; NAmE ˈɑːləɡɑːrk / noun 1 a member of an oligarchy 2 an extremely rich and powerful person, especially a Russian who became rich in business after the end of the former Soviet Union the power of the oligarchs to influence the government