Presenting your work at the office: Answering questions after the presentation

💬 多 before an adjective asks "how ___": 多长时间 means "how long a time". It works with other adjectives too, as in 多大 "how big/old" and 多远 "how far".

💬 项目 (xiàng mù) means "project" and comes up constantly in office talk.

💬 Put 大概 (dà gài) in front of a number to make it an estimate. Note that months need the counting word 个: 三个月, not 三月, which means "March".

💬 几 (jǐ) asks "how many" when you expect a small number, and it needs a counting word after it: 几个人. For larger amounts, use 多少 instead.

💬 Placed after an amount, 就 stresses that this much is all it takes: 五个人就够了 means "just five people is enough". Swap in other amounts, like 一天就够了 "one day is enough".

💬 花 (huā) means "to spend", and it works for money and time alike: 花时间 "spend time".

🇨🇳 This is a safe, face-saving way to dodge a figure you aren't sure of. It's far better received than guessing a number in front of the boss.

💬 Tack 可以吗 onto the end of any suggestion to ask permission politely: 我先走，可以吗 "May I leave first?"

🇨🇳 Offering to follow up later is a normal and professional way to handle a question you can't answer on the spot. Ask the questioner for permission rather than just announcing it.

💬 发 (fā) means "send" for anything electronic: 发微信 "send a WeChat message", 发短信 "send a text".

💬 吧 (ba) at the end turns a statement into a soft suggestion, much like "let's". Without it, the sentence sounds more like an order.

🇨🇳 This is usually said by whoever is chairing the meeting, often the most senior person, to wrap up. If you're the presenter, it's polite to let the manager be the one to say it.

💬 不 stays (bù) here because 客 is fourth tone… actually it shifts: before a fourth tone 不 becomes (bú), so it's (bú kè qi).

🇨🇳 辛苦了 acknowledges someone's effort. It's said by bosses to staff, or between colleagues after a task. It's warmer than a plain "thanks", and Chinese workplaces use it constantly.