Using English at Work：21 Working at My Desk(2)（在线收听）

At home, if you are messy like me, you may need to clear off your dining room table - that is, move your newspapers, books, and other things so that you'll have room to eat your meal.

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.