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1. 0:00
   Theo Theo: There's an idiom with corner. Cheese in the corner? My mind's blank.
2. 0:04
   Nadia Nadia: Headline for the cheese report?
3. 0:06
   Theo Theo: My client sells almost all the town's cheese. Cheese king?
4. 0:12
   Nadia Nadia: A king is fun.
5. 0:16
   Theo Theo: There's an idiom with corner. Cheese in the corner? My mind's blank.
6. 0:22
   Narrator Theo has the facts.
7. 0:24
   Narrator One seller supplies almost all the cheese in town.
8. 0:29
   Narrator Corner the market: five things to know.
9. 0:32
   Narrator First, the meaning.
10. 0:35
    Narrator A seller controls most sales, or most supply, of one kind of product.
11. 0:42
    Narrator Sales went up five percent.
12. 0:44
    Narrator That's a good month, not cornering the market.
13. 0:48
    Narrator Now a seller that supplies nearly every shop.
14. 0:53
    Narrator Rivals have almost no room left.
15. 0:57
    Narrator For a small lead, use ordinary words like lead or outsell.
16. 1:04
    Nadia Nadia: Does anyone else sell cheese in town?
17. 1:07
    Theo Theo: A few shops, but they sell very little.
18. 1:11
    Nadia Nadia: Then the idiom fits. Write it down.
19. 1:14
    Theo Theo: Okay. What goes after market? In? On?
20. 1:19
    Narrator The idiom has a fixed shape.
21. 1:21
    Narrator After the market, add in or on, then the product.
22. 1:28
    Narrator A small family firm cornered the market in handmade violin cases across Europe.
23. 1:35
    Narrator Both in and on work.
24. 1:39
    Narrator In often goes with trades and products.
25. 1:43
    Narrator On often goes with services.
26. 1:47
    Narrator A tech startup has cornered the market on automated medical appointment scheduling.
27. 1:54
    Narrator Always keep the before market.
28. 1:57
    Narrator You may add a word between the and market, like European.
29. 2:04
    Narrator Skip at, with and toward.
30. 2:07
    Narrator Choose in or on.
31. 2:11
    Narrator Hey. Hey. The dukes are trying to corner the market.
32. 2:15
    Narrator The trader warns that the Dukes want to buy so much that they control the whole market.
33. 2:22
    Narrator That is what corner the market means.
34. 2:25
    Narrator In fast speech, the is weak and short.
35. 2:30
    Narrator The strong sounds are corner and market.
36. 2:36
    Narrator Your turn.
37. 2:38
    Narrator Listen, then say it out loud.
38. 2:41
    Narrator That mill has cornered the market in flour.
39. 2:51
    Narrator One shop cornered the market in umbrellas.
40. 3:03
    Narrator Choose the best answer.
41. 3:04
    Narrator Think about who controls the sales.
42. 3:13
    Narrator B. This café supplies most of the coffee, so rivals have no room.
43. 3:20
    Narrator A busy summer isn't enough.
44. 3:24
    Theo Theo: Look. He cornered the market in local cheese.
45. 3:27
    Nadia Nadia: Nice. Is it still true today?
46. 3:31
    Theo Theo: Yes! He still sells most of the cheese.
47. 3:34
    Nadia Nadia: Then we can say it another way.
48. 3:38
    Narrator Theo's client still leads today.
49. 3:41
    Narrator That gives us another way to say it.
50. 3:44
    Narrator For a finished event, use the past simple, cornered.
51. 3:50
    Narrator The regional cooperative cornered the market in cold-pressed walnut oil.
52. 3:57
    Narrator For a lead that still matters, we often use the present perfect.
53. 4:02
    Narrator That's has or have, plus cornered.
54. 4:07
    Narrator That software developer has cornered the market on warehouse inventory scanners.
55. 4:15
    Narrator After has or have, use cornered, not corner.
56. 4:21
    Narrator Fred's cornered the market on it.
57. 4:24
    Narrator He says Fred's cornered the market.
58. 4:28
    Narrator The present perfect "has cornered" shows Fred now controls all of it, so nobody else can
59. 4:34
    Narrator compete.
60. 4:37
    Narrator Choose the best answer.
61. 4:39
    Narrator Think about when the lead ended.
62. 4:47
    Narrator A. The lead is finished, so use the past simple: cornered.
63. 4:55
    Narrator The studio cornered the market on animated educational shorts.
64. 5:02
    Narrator That sentence praises the studio.
65. 5:05
    Narrator It doesn't accuse anyone of a crime.
66. 5:08
    Narrator Writers use it for good strategy, better delivery, or early technology.
67. 5:14
    Narrator Words like illegally can add the crime.
68. 5:18
    Narrator The idiom alone doesn't.
69. 5:21
    Narrator Officials checked if the supplier illegally cornered the market in heating oil.
70. 5:28
    Narrator Law is different.
71. 5:30
    Narrator A monopoly is a legal word for total control.
72. 5:34
    Narrator In legal writing, use it only when the law defines one.
73. 5:41
    Narrator A head start is only an early start.
74. 5:44
    Narrator It isn't control of sales.
75. 5:48
    Narrator Later, a big automaker took the sales.
76. 5:52
    Narrator That is cornering the market.
77. 5:57
    Narrator Having the upper hand is different too.
78. 6:00
    Narrator It means you are in a stronger position when you make a deal.
79. 6:05
    Narrator In a report, add numbers.
80. 6:08
    Narrator Without them, the phrase can sound like a big claim.
81. 6:12
    Narrator With ninety percent of contracts, the vendor has cornered the market in waste sensors.
82. 6:21
    Nadia Nadia: Does the report have numbers?
83. 6:23
    Theo Theo: Yes. Nine out of ten shops buy his cheese.
84. 6:28
    Nadia Nadia: Good. Numbers make your claim stronger.
85. 6:31
    Theo Theo: Then I'll put that number in the headline.
86. 6:35
    Narrator Choose the best answer.
87. 6:37
    Narrator Think about who sells more now.
88. 6:45
    Narrator A.
89. 6:47
    Narrator Selling first is just a head start.
90. 6:50
    Narrator Others now sell more, so it hasn't cornered the market.
91. 6:56
    Nadia Nadia: Ready to present to the client?
92. 6:58
    Theo Theo: Yes. Our client has cornered the market in local cheese.
93. 7:02
    Nadia Nadia: Perfect. And no cheese in the corner this time!
94. 7:05
    Theo Theo: Let's celebrate. Coffee is on me.
95. 7:10
    Narrator Now a dictation.
96. 7:12
    Narrator Listen and write the sentence.
97. 7:39
    Narrator Check your sentence.
98. 7:40
    Narrator Did you write the before market, and cornered with ed?
99. 7:48
    Narrator It means one seller controls most sales in one kind of product.
100. 7:53
     Narrator Keep the fixed shape: corner the market, then in or on.
101. 8:00
     Narrator Use cornered for finished events.
102. 8:04
     Narrator Use has cornered to show a lead that continues.
103. 8:10
     Narrator Next, practice this idiom with the exercises on the lesson page.
104. 8:16
     Narrator Like and subscribe for more.

Choose an answer for each question, then check it.

1. Question 1 Hear the line again

   In which business scenario is the idiom corner the market used accurately?

   A A regional boutique increases sales by five percent over the summer holidays. B An industrial supplier purchases nearly all local gravel quarries and supplies every road project. C A restaurant chain introduces two seasonal salads that attract favorable customer feedback.
   Check my answer Chat with the tutor