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Phrasal Verbs You Hear Every Day at Work
Why phrasal verbs matter at work
French speakers tend to use formal single-word verbs: postpone, investigate, cancel. Native English speakers at work use phrasal verbs constantly: put off, look into, call off. Both are correct, but if you only use the formal versions, you'll sound like a textbook — and you'll miss half of what your colleagues say.
The essentials
"I'll look into it and get back to you." Your most useful office phrase.
"I'll follow up with the client on Monday." Essential for email and meetings.
"Can we put off the meeting until next week?" More natural than "postpone" in speech.
"We need to come up with a solution by Friday." Informal but used at all levels.
"I'll sort out the logistics." Very British. Means "I'll handle it."
"Can you set up a meeting for next week?" Common in every office.
"They called off the launch." Slightly informal but used in all contexts.
"Let me run this by my manager." Means "let me check with them before deciding."
Watch out
Phrasal verbs change meaning completely with different particles. "Look into" (investigate) ≠ "look after" (take care of) ≠ "look up" (search for). Don't guess — learn each combination as a fixed phrase.
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Fix these French-influenced restaurant phrases:
- ‘I take the salmon, please.’
- ‘Can we have the addition?’
- ‘I am allergic at nuts.’
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