A lot of the time you will need to report things that break and things that don't work properly. Here are some of the more common phrases you may need if you are working in Britain:

General office phrases:

The photocopier's not working.

Something's stuck in the machine. How do you open it?

It's run out of paper.

There's no toner left.

Toner is the black powder that you put in the photocopier instead of ink.

Photocopiers go wrong all the time, and new employees often get the job of doing all the photocopying (when they are not making the tea for all the staff). As a result, it helps if you know something about changing paper, toner and removing things that are stuck in it.

And if you're using a computer:

The computer has crashed.

The screen just went blank.

There's been a power cut.

A power cut is when all the electricity stops. If it is just one piece of equipment that isn't working then we say:

The power's failed.

Of course the problem may be more easy to solve:

It's not plugged in.

It's not connected properly.

You'll know already if you use Windows that not everything runs smoothly if it is on a computer. Again it helps if you are familiar with one if you are looking for a job in an office over the summer.

Other electrical equipment:

The bulb's gone.

This means the bulb has stopped working, and not that the bulb has disappeared.

It's getting hot.

It's overheating.

It's giving off a strange smell.

There's smoke coming out of it.

Obviously if something is producing smoke then it is time to stand back and call the fire brigade. Their telephone number is 999, the same as the other emergency services.

A few others you might need:

Where do you keep the instruction manual?

Is there a tool box here?

I'll phone a mechanic.

Where's the first-aid box?

This fire extinguisher is empty.

If you have never used a fire extinguisher before, make sure you read the instructions on the British ones carefully. The don't always work the same way but to help they have illustrations next to each step. Make sure you use the right one for the job as well. Don't use a red one (containing water) on an electrical fire.

What should I do if…?

Are we supposed to sell it in that condition?

One of these is broken.

Where can I get a spare one?

It's leaking oil or something.

It's making a funny noise.

In this phrase, funny means strange. When someone says That's funny, we sometimes say Do you mean funny peculiar or funny ha-ha?

Is it supposed to do that?

How do I stop it from doing that?

How do you make it stop doing this?

Now it's your turn:

What do you think the best response is to each of these problems?

1) You have just come into the office and all the papers on the desk are wet. You look up at the ceiling and see water coming down.

a) Don't worry. One of my friends is a plumber.

b) Great! Now I can have a day off.

c) Is there a bucket somewhere?

2) You are working on a production line. You need a supply of three items but one of them hasn't been delivered yet. Your supervisor asks you what the problem is.

a) One of the deliveries is late. What should I do until it arrives?

b) Give me the missing equipment. I can't do the job yet.

c) Well you run the place. You should know.

3) The job you have involves using a computer for most of the time. The trouble is that the mouse icon is moving in an unusual way. One moment it's behaving properly and the next it sticks and doesn't move at the right speed.

a) There's something wrong with my mouse. Is there a spare one somewhere in the office?

b) Why is all the equipment in this place so old? Even prisoners have better computers than this.

c) Why don't we switch to a DOS version of this program?

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