Chapter 6

Vocabulaire professionnel de l'entreprise

Professional Business Vocabulary

Le vocabulaire anglais professionnel est indispensable pour communiquer dans une entreprise, participer à une réunion, parler de marketing, comprendre des informations économiques ou discuter de questions financières. Cette leçon rassemble le vocabulaire anglais professionnel essentiel, avec les mots et expressions de l'entreprise, du management, du marketing, de l'économie et de la finance. Chaque terme est accompagné de sa traduction française et d'un exemple en anglais pour faciliter son apprentissage et son utilisation en contexte.

Course progress
Chapter 01

Learning Objectives

By the end of this chapter, you should be able to understand and use essential business vocabulary in English.

  • Understand key vocabulary related to management.
  • Use common marketing terminology.
  • Understand basic economic concepts and vocabulary.
  • Describe companies, their activities and their organization.
  • Understand essential financial vocabulary.
  • Use business terms in complete professional sentences.
  • Distinguish between similar business terms.
  • Communicate more confidently in an international business environment.
Learning strategy: Do not memorize isolated words only. Learn each word together with its meaning, its grammatical category and an example in a business context.
Chapter 02

Management Vocabulary

Management vocabulary is used to discuss people, responsibilities, leadership and organizational performance.

01

Key Management Terms

English French Business example
management management / gestion Good management is essential for business performance.
manager manager / responsable The manager is responsible for the team.
leadership leadership / direction Leadership skills are important in international companies.
team équipe She manages a team of ten employees.
employee salarié / employé The company has over 500 employees.
department service / département He works in the sales department.
responsibility responsabilité She has responsibility for the European market.
performance performance / résultats The company wants to improve employee performance.
strategy stratégie The company needs a new growth strategy.
decision-making prise de décision Effective decision-making is important for managers.
Useful management expressions
To manage a team
Gérer une équipe
To set objectives
Fixer des objectifs
To make a decision
Prendre une décision
To achieve a target
Atteindre un objectif
To improve performance
Améliorer la performance
Chapter 03

Marketing Vocabulary

Marketing vocabulary helps you describe customers, products, markets, communication and commercial strategy.

02

Key Marketing Terms

English French Business example
marketing marketing She works in the marketing department.
market marché The company is entering a new market.
customer client We need to understand our customers.
consumer consommateur Consumer behaviour is changing rapidly.
target market marché cible Young professionals are our target market.
brand marque The company wants to strengthen its brand.
campaign campagne The marketing campaign starts next month.
advertising publicité The company invests heavily in advertising.
product produit The new product will be launched in June.
market research étude de marché Market research helps us understand customer needs.
competitor concurrent Our main competitor has reduced its prices.
customer needs besoins des clients We need to identify customer needs.
Key distinction: customer usually refers to someone who buys a product or service, while consumer refers to someone who uses or consumes a product or service.
Essential marketing collocations
Launch a product
Lancer un produit
Conduct market research
Réaliser une étude de marché
Identify customer needs
Identifier les besoins des clients
Build brand awareness
Développer la notoriété de la marque
Chapter 04

Economics Vocabulary

These terms are useful when discussing markets, economic conditions, growth, prices and employment.

03

Key Economic Terms

English French Business example
economy économie The global economy is changing rapidly.
economic growth croissance économique Economic growth has slowed this year.
inflation inflation High inflation can affect consumer spending.
unemployment chômage The unemployment rate has decreased.
interest rate taux d'intérêt Higher interest rates can affect investment.
supply offre Supply is limited in this market.
demand demande Demand for electric vehicles is increasing.
price prix Rising costs may increase prices.
income revenu Household income affects purchasing power.
GDP PIB GDP is an important measure of economic activity.
Remember: supply = offre   |   demand = demande

These two words are fundamental when discussing markets and prices.
Chapter 05

Company & Business Vocabulary

Use these words to describe companies, their activities, organization and business environment.

04

Key Business Terms

English French Business example
company entreprise The company operates in several countries.
business entreprise / activité The company has a successful business in Europe.
headquarters siège social The company's headquarters are in London.
branch agence / succursale The company opened a new branch in Madrid.
subsidiary filiale The group has several subsidiaries abroad.
industry secteur / industrie She works in the technology industry.
competitor concurrent We need to monitor our competitors.
supplier fournisseur We work with international suppliers.
client client The company has clients in over 20 countries.
stakeholder partie prenante Stakeholders are interested in the company's performance.
turnover chiffre d'affaires The company reported a higher turnover this year.
workforce effectif / main-d'œuvre The company has a workforce of 2,000 people.
Important false friend: In British business English, turnover commonly means chiffre d'affaires. It does not mean "profit".
Describing a company
The company was founded in 2010.
L'entreprise a été fondée en 2010.
The company operates in 15 countries.
L'entreprise est présente dans 15 pays.
It specializes in digital services.
Elle est spécialisée dans les services numériques.
Its headquarters are located in Paris.
Son siège social est situé à Paris.
Chapter 06

Finance Vocabulary

These terms are essential for understanding company financial performance and basic financial discussions.

05

Key Finance Terms

English French Business example
finance finance She works in corporate finance.
revenue chiffre d'affaires / revenus Revenue increased by 8% last year.
profit bénéfice / profit The company made a higher profit.
loss perte The company reported a loss.
cost coût We need to reduce production costs.
expense dépense / charge Operating expenses have increased.
investment investissement The company made a significant investment.
budget budget The marketing department has a limited budget.
cash flow flux de trésorerie Strong cash flow is important for a business.
asset actif The company owns valuable assets.
debt dette The company is reducing its debt.
shareholder actionnaire Shareholders receive information about company performance.
Key distinction:

Revenue / turnover = money generated from sales
Profit = money remaining after relevant costs and expenses are taken into account.
Essential financial expressions
Increase revenue
Augmenter le chiffre d'affaires
Reduce costs
Réduire les coûts
Make a profit
Réaliser un bénéfice
Report a loss
Enregistrer / annoncer une perte
Invest in a company
Investir dans une entreprise
Chapter 07

Vocabulary in Context

Knowing vocabulary means being able to use it naturally in professional sentences.

Management

"Our manager has set ambitious objectives for the team."

Notre manager a fixé des objectifs ambitieux pour l'équipe.

Marketing

"We need to identify our target market."

Nous devons identifier notre marché cible.

Economics

"Inflation can affect consumer spending."

L'inflation peut affecter les dépenses des consommateurs.

Business

"The company operates in the European market."

L'entreprise est présente sur le marché européen.

Finance

"The company needs to reduce its operating costs."

L'entreprise doit réduire ses coûts opérationnels.

Strategy

"The company is developing a new growth strategy."

L'entreprise développe une nouvelle stratégie de croissance.

Useful rule: Try to learn vocabulary through collocations — words that naturally appear together.

Examples: make a profit, reduce costs, launch a product, manage a team, conduct market research.
Chapter 08

Practice Activities

Test your understanding of the five vocabulary fields.

Activity 1 – Match the vocabulary

Match each English word with its French meaning.

English Meaning
1. shareholder a. fournisseur
2. supplier b. actionnaire
3. demand c. demande
4. profit d. bénéfice
5. target market e. marché cible
Answers: 1 → b   |   2 → a   |   3 → c   |   4 → d   |   5 → e
Activity 2 – Choose the correct word

"The company wants to ______ its operating costs."

Activity 3 – Complete the sentence

Complete the sentence with the appropriate business term.

"Our ______ has increased significantly because demand for our products is strong."

Possible answer: revenue

Activity 4 – Business vocabulary challenge

You are working for an international company. Explain in English:

  1. What your company does.
  2. Who its customers are.
  3. What market it operates in.
  4. Who its main competitors are.
  5. What its main business objective is.
Try to use at least five words from this chapter.

Example vocabulary: company · market · customer · competitor · strategy · revenue · management · product · finance
Chapter 09

Knowledge Check

Check your understanding before taking the final quiz.

1. What is a "supplier"?
2. What does "target market" mean?
3. What is "profit"?
Chapter 10

Final Quiz

Six questions covering management, marketing, economics, business and finance vocabulary.

Question 1

Which word means "fournisseur"?

Question 2

What does "target market" mean?

Question 3

Which term means "croissance économique"?

Question 4

Which word means "chiffre d'affaires" in a common business context?

Question 5

Which expression is correct?

Question 6

Which term refers to the people who own shares in a company?

Chapter 11

Vocabulary Checklist

Check the skills and vocabulary you can now use.

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