Business English: Negotiation Language
Negotiation language is the high-stakes professional vocabulary of buying, selling, persuading, and reaching agreement. Make an offer, counter-offer, accept, reject, compromise, meet halfway, common ground, sticking point, deal-breaker, bottom line, give and take, walk away, BATNA (best alternative to a negotiated agreement). Combined with hedging vocabulary (we’d be willing to, in principle, subject to, provided that) and conditional language (If you could…, We might be able to…), this is the productive base for B2 negotiation in real and exam contexts.
This worksheet builds B2 fluency with negotiation language in professional and consumer contexts.
Worksheet preview
What’s inside:
- Vocabulary box with 30+ negotiation terms grouped by phase (offer, counter-offer, agreement, breakdown)
- Negotiation-dialogue gap-fill in supplier-and-buyer contexts
- Role-play scenarios with role cards for both sides
- Multiple-choice items targeting register and politeness levels
- Full Answer Key plus Teacher Notes on intercultural negotiation conventions
Common challenges: Direct refusal sounds rude in English negotiation — No is replaced with That’s not something we could agree to, I’m afraid that’s not workable, We’d struggle with that. Conditional politeness: If you could move on the delivery date, we might be able to accept the price — the conditional softens what would otherwise be a hard counter-offer. Cultural variation matters: high-context cultures (East Asia, Latin America) prioritise relationship; low-context cultures (Germanic, Anglo) prioritise terms.
For: Adult and teenage learners (14+) at CEFR B2, in upper-intermediate classes, 1:1 lessons, or self-study — particularly professionals in sales, procurement, partnerships, or business development. Tested in Cambridge BEC Vantage and BEC Higher. Part of the Work & Money collection — the natural next step is Business English: Presenting Data, which covers the data-and-evidence side of B2 business communication.
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