Business Phrasal Verbs

Call it a day. = Stop what you are doing because you think you have done enough or don't want to do any more. / Say this when you want to stop a project or activity completely or when you want to take a break or rest.

• Let's call it a day. We've come to a good stopping point; let's pick it back up tomorrow.

• I've been working here for 20 years, and I think it's time to call it a day. I'm ready to make a change.

• I'm tired; I'm calling it a day and I'm going to bed!

Keep me (someone) posted. / Keep me (someone) in the loop. = Keep me (someone) informed about a project, plan or activity. / Keep me (someone) informed about the latest developments.

• Please keep me in the loop with any new developments.

• Keep the clients in the loop with weekly updates.

• Janet can't make the meeting tomorrow, so keep her posted about what you discuss.

• I'll keep you posted when I hear something from John.

to sort out = to solve, resolve a problem / to arrange, organise things

• I have called this meeting to sort out the scheduling problem.

• Can you sort out the confusion about the payment?

• Has John sorted out the paperwork for the client?

• You need to sort out the files; they are a bit disorganised.

• There's still a problem with the telephone. Sort it out please.

cut back on = reduce / do or use less of something

• We need to cut back on expenditure.

• Companies are cutting back on telecommuting (home office / smart working).

• I want to cut back on my hours as I am working 60 hours a week.

• Let's cut back on the number of meetings per month.

• What can we cut back on to make our company more sustainable?

Hang on (a minute). (informal - not to be used with a boss or client - "One moment, please" is a better choice) = Wait a minute. / Wait for a short time.

• Paul: Can I have a word, Shirley?

Shirley: Hang on a minute. I just need to finish this email.

• Hang on; I'll be there in a moment.

get cracking = start doing something quickly

• Let's get cracking! We need to leave in 30 minutes.

• I'd better get cracking with this report or I'll be late with it.

• We've got a lot to do today, so let's get cracking.

• What are you waiting around for? Get cracking!

to be at someone's beck and call = to be always ready to do what someone asks

• I'm not at your beck and call. I'll have to check my schedule and let you know when I'm free.

• We are at our clients' beck and call. Anything they need, they only have to ask and we'll be there.

• She expects us to be at her beck and call all day and night. I'm turning my phone off!

Get up to speed. = Catch up on information.

Get someone up to speed. / Bring someone up to speed. = give someone the most recent information

• I got up to speed on the new regulations rather quickly.

• John will get you up to speed on the project so far.

• Before we speak about the new activities, I'd like to bring you up to speed with the latest developments.

to get the ball rolling = to set an activity in motion / to start a new activity or project

• Can you get the ball rolling by making a list of all the requirements?

• John is getting the ball rolling by holding a short meeting today.

• We need to get this cake made, so I'll get the ball rolling and measure out all the ingredients.

to fill out = to complete (a form)

• Please fill out the application form online.

• We have so much information to fill out when we order supplies.

• You should fill the form out in blue ink.

• When you receive a new order from the client, fill the purchase order out online.

to come up = to happen, arise or occur unexpectedly

• I'm sorry, I can't make the meeting tomorrow; something unexpected has come up.

• John won't be with us today; something important came up at home.

• We missed the appointment due to an unforeseen issue that came up at the office.

to weigh up = to carefully assess

• Let's look at the information and weigh up our options.

• You'll have to weigh up the risks to see if it is worth doing.

• He weighed up the advantages and disadvantages before purchasing the new equipment.

to call off = to cancel

• The meeting was called off and postponed to a later date.

• We called off the conference due to the pandemic.

• The union is going to call off the strike if the government agrees to its demands.

• I'm sorry; I need to call off our appointment as I'm not feeling well.

to deal with = to handle / to manage / to take care of (a problem)

• Thanks for dealing with that problem.

• I dealt with the customers in my previous job, but now I deal with suppliers.

• We deal with a lot of issues in our department, but most can be dealt with in a short time.

• Can you deal with Mr Smith? He's complaining again.

to take up = to occupy time, space or attention

• Commuting takes up too much of my day. Teleworking would be a real time saver.

• Sorry to take up so much of your time. Next time, I'll make it quick.

• The equipment takes up too much space. Let's try to reorganise the office space.

• These files take up a lot of disk space.

to note down = to write something down

• Please note down any questions you have for our meeting.

• The numbers were noted down in order to make a comparison.

• I'm going to note down my ideas to present to you next week.

to drop in (on) = to pay someone a casual visit / to visit someone (sometimes unexpectedly) for a short period of time

• These days, while many people are working from home, some of us are dropping in on Zoom or Skype meetings for a short time while others are spending hours in online meetings.

• Hi, I hope you don't mind me dropping in for a few minutes. I wanted to wish you all a happy new year. Now, I'll let you continue with your meeting.

• My dad dropped in on his way to the supermarket. He dropped off (left) some cake.

• The neighbours drop in on us unannounced (unexpectedly) sometimes.

to put off = to delay / to postpone

• The meeting has been put off for a week. It will be a week later than originally planned.

• A lot of things have been put off in 2020 due to COVID. However, my niece and her husband didn't put off their wedding. It went ahead as planned. I was happy to watch the live stream on the Internet.

• Never (Don't) put off until tomorrow what you can do today. (idiom) = Don't delay doing something that you can do immediately.

Jane: I don't want to do my homework today; it isn't due until Friday.

Dad: Jane, never put off until tomorrow what you can do today. You have lots of time to do it today.

to pick up where you left off / to pick (something) up where (one) left off = to resume or start (something) again from the last point where one had previously stopped

• Let's pick up the meeting where we left off yesterday. We were speaking about the new budget.

• The football match will pick up where it left off after the rain has stopped.

• I picked up where I left off with these new phrasal verbs. The new ones are at the top so you can find them easily.

to zero in on (something) = to focus closely on

• There are a lot of issues to go over, but we should zero in on restructuring the work locations to include teleworking.

• Let's zero in on social media ads to reach the local population.

• What do you think we should zero in on to solve this problem?

to pencil in (a date / an appointment) = to put an appointment on the calendar / schedule, but it is not confirmed / to arrange a tentative appointment

• Let's plan to meet in a couple of weeks. I'll pencil in the 20th and confirm it with you on Monday.

• Why don't we pencil in the dates for our next two appointments, and we can get back to each other next week to confirm.

• Hmm. Wednesday, the 15th. I'm not sure, but I'll pencil it in.

to run (something) by (someone) = to tell someone an idea to get his / her opinion

• I have an idea. Can I run it by you?

• John wants to take two weeks off in November, but he has run it by his boss first.

• So, today I'd like to run some ideas by you for upcoming projects.

to get together = to assemble / to meet up with others / to gather

• Let's get together for a quick meeting on Wednesday.

• Did you get together after work on Friday?

• We're getting together for a quick bite to eat before the meeting.

• Can we get together to go over the presentation?

to look over = to examine (quickly) / to check / to inspect

• James, can you to look over the report for me and give me your feedback?

• After I looked over the numbers, I found one or two errors.

• Let's look over the report together before we upload it.

• I'm looking over the applications now, and I'll get back to you with my first round picks.

to catch up (with/on work or other activities) = to do something that should have been done earlier

• I am so far behind with my work; I've got a lot of catching up to do.

• Please don't put any calls through for an hour. I need to catch up with my emails.

• Anna said she's going home to catch up on her sleep.

• Well done! You have caught up on all your work. Go home early today!

• Sally missed three days of school, and now she has to catch up on all the work she missed.

to back (someone) up = to say that someone is telling the truth / to support someone's point of view or action

• I didn't break the window. John was with me all day; he will back me up.

• Susan will back you up if your boss doesn't believe you.

• Will you back us up if we tell him what really happened?

• The whole team backed me up on my idea.

• Carl's family backed him up with his plan to spend a year in Asia.