My students are learning what our accounting textbook calls "the language of business." As they gain fluency, they start talking about debits and credits, business transactions, and financial reports. It's a cross-cultural language spoken by business people worldwide. The key word in this language is "profit."
"When we format a company's income statement, where do we report net profit?" I ask the class.
After some near-miss answers, Mei Li says, "It goes on the bottom line."
"Right. And what is the bottom line?" I ask her.
"It's total sales minus total expenses," she answers.