Use of English

Working Across Languages

In many global firms, the (0) DEFAULT assumption is that adopting a single corporate language will smooth communication. In practice, however, multilingual workplaces are rarely so straightforward. Even when everyone is nominally fluent, meaning can be (1) .......... by accent, register and the unspoken rules of turn-taking. A joke that lands perfectly in one language may fall (2) .......... in another, and what sounds admirably direct to one team can strike another as needlessly brusque. Managers often try to solve this by issuing style guides and insisting on “plain English”, but such measures can be (3) .......... at best. People still revert to their first language when under pressure, and side conversations can (4) .......... those who are already less confident. Meanwhile, employees who speak the corporate language as a second or third language may be unfairly (5) .......... as less competent, simply because they hesitate or search for words. The most effective teams treat language as a shared responsibility: they (6) .......... for clarification, summarise decisions, and circulate notes so that no one is left guessing. They also recognise that translation is not a mechanical (7) .........., but an act of judgement. Ultimately, the goal is not perfect fluency, but a culture in which misunderstandings are spotted early and addressed without anyone losing (8) .......... .