Using English at Work

Episode 4 - Working at My Desk

I said, "I clear off a few stacks of paper." A "stack" (stack) is a pile, or a group of things that are placed on top of each other. A "stack of papers" is many pieces of paper placed on top of each other, but we can also talk about stacks of books, stacks of coins, stacks of folded towels - all of these are stacks.

Next, I open the computer file that I've been working on for the past week. When we talk about papers, a "file" is a group of papers that are kept together because they're related to the same topic. But here I'm talking about a "computer file," which is information stored electronically on a computer, a CD, or some hard drive. This course has audio files that are stored on a computer or on a CD. When I open the computer file, I'm opening a document. A "document," here, is the same as a computer file; it's information stored electronically with one name on your computer or CD. We often talk about Microsoft Word documents and Excel documents. It's something that has information on it, usually on one specific topic.

The document I'm working on is a report that is due next week and the deadline is fast approaching. A "deadline" is the date when something must be finished. My report is due next week, meaning that the deadline is next week; I must complete it by next week. When I say the deadline is fast approaching, I mean that we have a lot of work to do in a very short period of time between now and the deadline; the deadline is "coming up soon," we could also say. Something that is fast approaching can be something positive or negative. If your birthday is next week, you may remind your friends that your birthday is fast approaching. Depending on old you are, this is a good thing or a bad thing!

Next, I open my filing cabinet. A "filing cabinet," sometimes called a "file cabinet," is a piece of furniture usually made of wood or metal that has large drawers that are used to hold paper files. Most office desks have a file cabinet, but there are also separate file cabinets that are not part of a desk. The documents in filing cabinets are usually organized alphabetically, from the letter A to the letter Z, or by date, or by some other way that is logical so that the files are easy to find. Or, if you're like me, you have no system and your files are impossible to find!

I open the filing cabinet and take out two files and a manila envelope that has the information I need in them. A "manila envelope" is a large, yellow-colored envelope (notice we can say "envelope" or "envelope") made from thick paper. In the United States, most envelopes are small and white. We use these to send letters, usually. But larger envelopes are often manila envelopes that are yellow. These envelopes are usually the size of a piece of paper and let you send things in one package without folding them. For the report, the information I need is inside two files and in a manila envelope.