follow up

Meaning

As a phrasal verb, 'follow up' means to take further action on something that has already started, such as sending a reminder email, checking the status of a project, or contacting a client after an initial meeting. It is a vital concept in business to ensure tasks are completed.

Examples

• I'll follow up with the client tomorrow to see if they've signed the contract.

  I'll follow up with the client tomorrow to see if they've signed the contract.

• It's been a week since the interview, so it might be a good idea to follow up with a polite email.

  It's been a week since the interview, so it might be a good idea to follow up with a polite email.

• We need to follow up on the action items we discussed during Monday's meeting.

  We need to follow up on the action items we discussed during Monday's meeting.

• She promised to follow up on my request as soon as she gets back to her desk.

  She promised to follow up on my request as soon as she gets back to her desk.

• Don't forget to follow up with the marketing team about the banner designs.

  Don't forget to follow up with the marketing team about the banner designs.

Common Mistakes

• ✗ I will follow up you tomorrow.

  ✓ I will follow up with you tomorrow.

  When 'follow up' has a human object, you must use the preposition 'with'.

• ✗ We need to follow up the project.

  ✓ We need to follow up on the project.

  Use the preposition 'on' when referring to a task, issue, or project that needs checking.

• ✗ I sent a follow up email.

  ✓ I sent a follow-up email.

  When used as an adjective modifying a noun, it must be hyphenated ('follow-up'). The phrasal verb itself is two separate words ('follow up').

Related Expressions

Practice

• I haven't heard back from the supplier, so I will ___ with them this afternoon.

  💡 Contact them again to get an update.

  Show answer

  follow up

• Make sure to ___ on those leads we got from the conference.

  💡 Take further action on a previous task.

  Show answer

  follow up