If you work in an international environment or deal with English-speaking clients, knowing business phrasal verbs will help you communicate more naturally and confidently.
Here are 12 essential phrasal verbs that come up frequently in professional settings:
1. Follow up – To check on something after an initial action
- I’ll follow up with the client next week.
- Please follow up on the proposal we sent yesterday.
2. Get back to – To reply to someone later
- I’ll get back to you by Friday with the details.
- Can you get back to me on that budget request?
3. Put together – To prepare or assemble something
- We need to put together a presentation for the board meeting.
- The team put together an excellent marketing plan.
4. Look into – To investigate or research
- I’ll look into the issue and get back to you.
- HR is looking into the new policy changes.
5. Bring up – To mention or raise a topic
- She brought up the budget concerns during the meeting.
- Don’t forget to bring up the deadline in tomorrow’s call.
6. Come up with – To suggest or create an idea
- We need to come up with a solution by Monday.
- The marketing team came up with a great campaign.
7. Turn around – To complete something quickly or improve performance
- Can you turn around this report by tomorrow?
- The company managed to turn around its profits last quarter.
8. Set up – To arrange or establish
- We need to set up a meeting with the suppliers.
- They set up a new office in Singapore.
9. Go over – To review or check something
- Let’s go over the contract one more time.
- I’ll go over your presentation slides this afternoon.
10. Take on – To accept responsibility or a new role
- She took on the role of project manager.
- We can’t take on any more projects right now.
11. Work out – To resolve a problem or calculate something
- I’m sure we can work out a solution.
- Have you worked out the final numbers yet?
12. Reach out – To contact someone
- Feel free to reach out if you have any questions.
- He reached out to the supplier for more information.
Pro Tip for Meetings and Emails
In professional English, these verbs make you sound more natural than using only formal single verbs. For example:
- Instead of “I will investigate”, say “I’ll look into it.”
- Instead of “I will contact you”, say “I’ll reach out to you.”
At English Council, our Business English course focuses heavily on these practical expressions used in real workplace situations — meetings, negotiations, emails, and presentations.
Would you like to sound more confident and professional in your next business interaction? Get in touch with us to join our next intake.
Small improvements in vocabulary lead to big improvements in communication.