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VERBS
AND PREPOSITIONS FOUND IN THE OFFICE.
Created
by Malcolm Pemberton on OpenOffice.org Writer/Web
Some
of the most common combinations found in the office.
They
can often be quite far apart from each other in the sentence.
The
order and delivery process
The
materials were ordered from the
supplier ten days ago.
They
were ordered for the
Smolensk Project.
The
supplier says that the order was sent/dispatched
to us on Monday.
It
was sent/dispatched from their
Helsinki depot by carrier.
Unfortunately,
the order has not yet arrived.
(no preposition)
The
order was loaded onto a
truck in their yard.
The
driver signed for it –
I saw him take the paper and sign
it.
He
gave the paper back to
the warehouse man.
We
were looking for a supplier that we could depend
on.
They
were chosen for this
contract because of their
excellent delivery record.
We
all agreed on the
choice.
We
all agreed that they
were a good choice. (no
preposition)
We
agreed on the price,
but disagreed on the
delivery schedule.
We
concentrated on finding
a solution, and didn't focus on
blame.
We
bought 100 packets of
paper for the printer.
The
paper was delivered to us
yesterday, but it was the wrong quality.
The
paper was delivered yesterday,
but it was the wrong quality. (no
preposition)
The
supplier will come tomorrow with the correct paper, and take
back the other.
Mary
has been with us for ten years – we must buy
a present for her.
Tomorrow,
we can have coffee and cake and give
the present to her.
Attaching
and enclosing: You can't enclose anything in an email.
I
am attaching our
catalogue and price list to this
email (.pdf). (Always give
the file extension.)
I
am enclosing our
catalogue and price list with this
letter. (physical
enclosure)
I
am attaching the
agenda to this letter.
(physical attachment –
staple or paper clip)
Phoning:
('Call'
has many other meanings – better to use 'phone')
I'll
call him after lunch =
I'll phone him after
lunch. (no preposition with
'call' or 'phone')
I'll
call on him after
lunch = I'll visit him
after lunch. (no
preposition with 'visit')
I'm on the phone, could you wait just a minute?
Oh no! I'm on hold and the music is dreadful.
Replying:
I
replied to them last
week.
I
replied to their
letter last week.
They
replied to me/my
letter yesterday.
I
received a reply from them
yesterday.
Recording:
We
enter all orders in
the order book, as we receive them.
The
software is very simple. Write the product code in
this column, the description in
the next column,
the
number of pieces in
this column etc. The unit prices and total prices appear
automatically. When everything
is
ready, press 'enter' and the customer receipt will be printed
out.
Cashing
up at end of the day at the Kiosk:
(NB:
The 'float' is the amount of money in the till before start of
business.)
”At
the end of the day we count up the day's takings, subtract the
'float' and enter the result in
this
book here. The money goes in/into the safe over there. In the
morning, I will count out the float, which
is
exactly €500 of small coins and notes, and put it
in the till. If I need more coins or notes during the day, I
have
to
'buy them' from the safe with money from
the till.”
Handover
Log:
Towards
the end of the shift, the outgoing supervisor enters all ongoing
tasks in the log.
When the incoming supervisor arrives, they then read through the tasks together.
If there are any questions, this is the time to ask them.
When all is clear, the incoming supervisor signs the log and his colleague can go off duty.
Duty
Personnel:
We
can talk about 'Duty Doctor', 'Duty Manager' etc.
They
may be present for the whole shift, or they may be 'on call'.
'On duty' usually means the worker is present.
'On call' means that he or she can be contacted if necessary.
At an airport the TDM (Terminal Duty Manager) is fully responsible for the terminal
while they are on duty. They cannot leave before their replacement arrives and handover is complete.
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