英語グレイゴBLOG (NHKラジオ講座ディクテ)

NHKラジオ講座（ラジオ英会話・実践ビジネス英語）のテキストには載っていない、番組中の会話を書き起こしています。

カテゴリ： 実践ビジネス英語

 

H: Nissen explains how his job responsibilities ended up being very different from what he was originally told he would do. Salmans asks why retail sales are suffering amid a number of positive economic indicators, such as low unemployment. And Grace says higher wages can be a burden on retailers, which have low profit margins.


be excited by the challenge
やりがいのある仕事、課題に興奮する、心が躍る
H: Exhilarated at the idea of doing something difficult or challenging. Excited by how it will stretch our abilities. “He was excited by the challenge of opening up a new market.” Or “I was excited by the challenge of working in a new industry.”

thanks to
何々のおかげで、何々のために
H: Someone or something is responsible for this. And we use this in good and bad situations. “She’s very well-off, thanks to her wise investments.” Or “I got there late, thanks to a traffic jam.”
S: 日本語でもそうですが、何々のおかげで、というのは良い場合、悪い場合、両方使いますね。

unhealthy
健康でない、経済・会社が弱い
H: This can mean physical health, though Nissen is talking about conditions and behaviors that make it difficult for a person or a thing to function well. “The atmosphere at the Company X is very unhealthy. It’s extremely competitive and stressful.” And when a company is struggling, we also say it’s ailing. “The ailing retailer closed three stores last year.”
S: 同じような意味でailingも使うとヘザーさんが言っていましたね。健全でない、病んでいるという意味ですね。

at a record pace
記録的な、空前のペースで
H: Nissen says American retail chains are closing stores at a record pace. At the fastest rate in history. If we use record alone this way as an adjective, it means the highest, the most etc. Things like  “We’ve seen record sales this quarter” okay record high sales but if I say “a record drop in sales” then that’s the biggest drop in history.
S: record breakingとも言いますが、ただ単にrecordだけでも記録的なという意味になりますね。

due to
何々のせいで、何々が原因で
H: In this case due to means caused by, because. “He’s off today due to a cold.” Or “The flight was canceled due to poor weather.” It can also mean scheduled to. “Company X is due to release its new model next month.” Or “The plane is due to arrive at 4:30 pm.”

gas prices
ガソリン価格
S: gasというのはgasolineの略ですね。

low margin
利益率の低い
H: Down towards the bottom, Grace says rising wages can be difficult for low-margin companies like retail stores. When a company’s revenue is not much more than its expenditures. A low-margin car, for example, sells for not much more than it cost to make it.
S: 例えばOurs is a low-margin business. We have to watch every penny.なんて言いますね。「我々のビジネスはもうけの薄い商売である。だから１セントでも無駄にしてはいけない」というような言い方ですね。

buying habits
購買習慣
H: Our regular practices regarding buying, what we regularly do when buying. We use habits with a lot of words. Eating habits. “She picked up bad eating habits in college.” Or spending habits. “He has very good spending habits. He doesn’t make impulse purchases.” 
S: impulse purchaseというのは衝動買いのことですね。

 
続きを読む

 


H: Nissen says his previous boss encouraged him to be open and claimed to always be available but that turned out not to be true. He says he began to burn out and to feel completely unmotivated. Nissen also describes a high-stress workplace where he did not feel secure and there was constant pressure to produce more. 
Grace asks about his job responsibilities. 


cultural fit
文化的適合、企業文化に馴染むこと
H: We often hear about corporate culture, the fundamental values and atmosphere of a company. Cultural fit would be how well suited someone is to a company, to those values and the atmosphere. Imagine a very competitive company, where employees are encouraged to be rivals. You might say “Kevin is very competitive too, so that company is a good cultural fit for him.”

speak one’s mind
自分の思うままを言う、本音を語る
H: Honestly express what we’re thinking even if it might not be popular or there’s a risk to us. “He just joined the company so he’s reluctant to speak his mind,” for example. Or “The boss wants everyone to speak their mind. He won’t get angry, he promises.”
S: 言いたいことを言う、自分の意見を言うといったニュアンスですね。speak one’s pieceとも言います。

unannounced 
事前の連絡をしないで、予告なしに
H: McMillan asks “Did you actually walk into his office unannounced?”
Without prior notice or warning. Such as “She came to my desk unannounced and I couldn’t talk because I was very busy.” Or “Investigators arrived unannounced and searched the entire company.” 
S: 受付に行って相手に来たことを知らせるというのがannounceという動詞ですね。そういうことをせずに事前の通知もなしにというのがunannouncedとなります。

naive
考えが単純な、世間知らずの、うぶな
S: 日本語では純粋で飾り気がない意味が強いんですが、英語の場合には考えが足りないとかですね、世間知らずなという意味で使います。

in retrospect
今にして思えば、振り返ってみると
H: Looking back after the fact. Considering something after it happened. Like, “In retrospect I should’ve been better prepared for the meeting.” Or “In retrospect the company shouldn’t have expanded so quickly.”

fit in
馴染む、適応する、うまくはまる
H: Harmonize well with one’s surroundings. You can use this about things as well as people. “That building doesn’t fit in with this neighborhood. It’s too modern.”

get to the point where
何々の段階に達する、何々にまでなる
H: Reach the level, the degree where this is happening. Nissen could also say reach the point where. For example, “She’s really stressed out. It’s reached the point where she’s snapping at people.” 
S: snap at people、人々に噛み付く、怒るということですね。

do more with less
より少ない労力・財源でより多くのことをする
H: Down towards the bottom, Nissen said “Directives to do more with less had driven me to near the breaking point.” 

drive someone to
人を何々に追い込む
H: Nissen is using this in a negative sense. He means force someone, compel them to a bad action or a bad situation. There’s also the adjective driven, which can mean strongly motivated, work very hard to succeed or achieve something. You could say “He’s really driven. He never leaves the office before 8 pm.” 
S: drivenというのはやる気のあるという意味の形容詞として使いますね。それから-drivenというのもよく目にします。コンピューターの分野ですとmenu-drivenとかtext-drivenのような形で使われます。それからcustomer-driven marketと言えば顧客主導型市場という意味ですね。何々-drivenというのはその前の語が主導権、強制力、推進力などを持っていることを示します。

near the breaking point
極限近くに、限界に近い
H: The mental point where we can’t take it anymore, where we give up, or we lose control of our emotions. Things like “He’s near the breaking point due to the constant criticism from his boss.” Or “That sales person was so rude I was near my breaking point” 
S: ストレスや我慢の限界点といった意味で使いますね。
H: And when we lose that control, when we pass the breaking point, in English we often say “That’s it.” Like “That is the point where I can take no more.” 

 
続きを読む

 

H: Pearson describes how A&A keeps in touch with former employees. 
And Ueda asks what prompted Nissen to leave A&A. 
Nissen says he wasn’t unhappy there but felt he wasn’t doing enough to achieve his ambitions. Nissen adds that the other company needed him to start immediately, so he had to decide very quickly. 


alumni ecosystem 
同窓生、元従業員とのネットワーク
H: Biologically speaking an ecosystem is an ecological community and its environment. Pearson means a system in which people interact with each other, in this case former employees. You could also talk about the ecosystem of a company and its suppliers or a company and its customers.
S: ecosystemとは生態系のことね。ここではalumni ecosystemということで卒業生、同窓生、元従業員とのコミュニティといった意味で使われています。「同窓会」のことはalumni associationというふうに言います。

qualified
適した能力のある、適任の、資格のある
H: Has the skills or certifications required for a task. We also say people are underqualified and overqualified. “He can’t get a job because he’s overqualified. Companies will hire someone with less experience for a lower salary.”

 
続きを読む

H: Pearson asks the staff to welcome back Nissen, who has returned to A&A after working at another company for a while. 
Nissen expresses gratitude for being able to rejoin A&A, which he says would’ve been difficult without a clear company plan for taking in boomerang employees. 
Grace explains why she thinks boomerang employees will increase in the years to come.

  
boomerang employee, boomeranger
一度やめた会社に戻る再入社社員

H: Boomerang employee is part of the title of our vignette today. And about a third of the way down, Pearson says “So, without further ado, here’s Bill the boomeranger.” 

previous life 
前世、以前のキャリアなどの意味でユーモラスに使うこともあります。

H: Pearson is making a joke here. He’s using the idea of reincarnation, the idea that one person lives multiple lives. Myself, I was a table in a previous life. I say that because I have good luck getting seated in restaurants and such. I can almost always get a table. I also say I have table karma. 
S: いまヘザーさんはreincarnationという言葉を仰っていましたね。輪廻、再生、のことですね。karma、カルマも同じような意味で使います。

続きを読む




SUMMARY:
Grace cites a study that found swiftly formed opinions about a person did not differ much from opinions formed over a longer time. Collins says first impressions can be powerful and extremely hard to change.
Ueda mentions the importance of appearance. And Pearson says it's vital to look polished and professional. He advises against looking flashy or desperate for attention.



crucial
決定的な、極めて重要な
H: Vital, decisive. "It's crucial we win this construction bid." Or "Being on time is crucial to making a good impression."


internally justify
自分の中で正当化する
H: Find reasons in their head that something is right or reasonable. "He justified buying the expensive suit as a way to impress clients." You could also say something like "Outwardly I was smiling but internally I was furious." And internally can also mean inside an organization or a group. "The company investigated the scandal internally."
S: 会社に関して、internallyと言えば「社内で」という意味になりますね。We'll discuss this internally first.と言えば「まず社内で話をしてみます」ということですね。


time constraints
時間の制約
H: A limit on one's time. "We had serious time constraints during our business trip, so there wasn't any time for sightseeing."

You shouldn't judge a book by its cover.
外見で中身を判断すべきではない。
H: This is a very famous expression. We shouldn't judge someone's worth or something's quality by its external appearance. We also say appearances can be deceiving. And that means that something's outward appearance can give the wrong impression about its inner value or condition. "She seems snobbish but appearances can be deceiving. She might actually be shy."
S: 同じような意味で今ヘザーさんは、Appearances can be deceiving. と言っていましたね。deceiving、騙されやすいということですね。


make assumptions about
何々について推測する・決めてかかる
H: Or assume things about. Believe that something is true even though we don't have evidence of it or no one has told us that. "We shouldn't assume a person is unhappy because they're single. Maybe they don't want to get married."

be desperate to
何々しようと躍起になる、何々したくてたまらない
H: Here desperate means needing or wanting to do something very much. There's a sense of "Please, please. I have to have this." And that's not necessarily wrong or inappropriate. A person could be desperate to find childcare so that they can go back to work.


like it or not
好むと好まざるとに関わらず
S: Whether you like it or not、と言うこともできます。
H: Regardless of how we feel about it, this is the situation. "Like it or not, Peter will be our supervisor starting next month." Or "Like it or not, our metabolism slows down as we get older."
S: metabolism、新陳代謝ということですね。


WORDS AND PHRASESで取り上げなかった語句

polished
H: If something is polished, it's refined, the flaws have been removed. Like a metal surface has been polished and looks shiny. "That presentation wasn't very polished. Some of the visual aids were confusing or unnecessary." Or to use the active verb, you could say "I want to polish this ad a little more, make it better."
S: 金属に関して言えば、磨かれたということですね。洗練されたといった意味でビニェットでは使われています。

count for a lot
H: It's very important. It's a big factor in how something is judged. You could say "Design counts for a lot in consumer electronics. People like chic products."
S: 大切であるということ。

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