Business English Phrasal Verbs: 100+ Common Expressions with Examples

Key takeaways

Key takeaways

• Business English is built on phrasal verbs that rarely appear in textbooks but dominate real meetings and emails.
• Phrasal verbs in business carry nuance: “push back” and “reject” are not identical, and knowing the difference matters.
• Learning them by context category (meetings, negotiations, deadlines) makes them easier to retain and apply.
• A business English tutor can drill the ones you need for your specific role and correct errors in real conversation.

You studied English for years, passed your tests, and then sat in your first real business meeting and realized you understood maybe half of what was said. “Let’s circle back on that,” “I’ll loop you in,” “can we push this back?” These were not in any grammar book you studied.

That is the vocabulary gap this guide addresses. This guide covers 100+ business English phrasal verbs organized across eight workplace functions: meetings and presentations, negotiations, deadlines and project management, emails and communication, decision-making, reporting, problem-solving, and professional growth.

italki, operating for 15+ years across 150+ languages, connects you with business English tutors who specialize in workplace communication and can help you use these phrases naturally and correctly in your professional context.

How are business phrasal verbs different from regular phrasal verbs?

A standard English phrasal verb like “run into” (to meet someone unexpectedly) has a general meaning. Business phrasal verbs carry professional weight and often have subtly different meanings depending on context. “Push back” in a deadline conversation means delay to a later date. “Push back” in a negotiation means to resist or object. The same two words, two different professional meanings. Using the wrong sense in the wrong context causes real miscommunication. These verbs also carry tone. Saying “I’ll look into it” is softer and more professional than “I’ll investigate it.” Saying “we had to let someone go” is standard professional usage; the blunter alternatives sound harsh in most business cultures. Register matters. Getting the register wrong in a real meeting is a lot more costly than getting it wrong on a worksheet.Book a trial lesson with a business English tutor and get corrected before it matters.

1. Meetings and Presentations (18 phrasal verbs)

Phrasal Verb	Meaning	Example
Call off	Cancel a meeting or event	The client called off the presentation at the last minute.
Call on	Invite someone to speak	The chair called on the finance lead to present.
Come up with	Generate an idea	Can you come up with three options by tomorrow?
Draw up	Prepare a document or plan	She drew up the agenda before the meeting.
Follow up	Take further action after a meeting	Let’s follow up on this by Thursday.
Go over	Review or check	He went over the slides with the team before the call.
Lay out	Present information clearly	She laid out the three main risks clearly.
Open up	Begin discussion on a topic	Let’s open up the floor for questions.
Run by	Share something for someone’s feedback	Can I run this idea by you?
Run over	Exceed the scheduled time	The meeting ran over by twenty minutes.
Set up	Arrange or organize	Can you set up a call for next week?
Speak up	Say something, or speak more loudly	If you disagree, please speak up now.
Sum up	Summarize key points	Let me sum up what we have agreed on.
Take over	Assume control or continue for someone	She took over the presentation when he left.
Touch on	Briefly mention a topic	We will touch on budget concerns later.
Wrap up	Finish and conclude	Let’s wrap up the meeting now and follow up by email.
Zoom in	Focus closely on a specific detail	The report zooms in on the Southeast Asia market.
Circle back	Return to a topic later	Let’s circle back to that point after the break.

Eighteen verbs to hold onto is a lot from a list alone. Find an online English tutor to run mock meetings with you until these come out automatically.

2. Negotiations (12 phrasal verbs)

Phrasal Verb	Meaning	Example
Back down	Stop insisting on a position	They backed down after we showed the data.
Back up	Support a claim with evidence	Can you back that figure up with a source?
Break down	Fail; collapse without agreement	Talks broke down over the pricing structure.
Come around	Change one’s opinion	She eventually came around to the idea.
Come to terms	Reach an agreement	Both sides came to terms on the final contract.
Fall through	Fail to be completed	The deal fell through at the last stage.
Hold out	Refuse to accept an offer	They held out for a higher price than we could offer.
Nail down	Finalize a detail or agreement	Let’s nail down the delivery date before we close.
Push back	Resist or object to a proposal	The legal team pushed back on the liability clause.
Settle on	Agree on after consideration	We finally settled on a three-year term.
Stand firm	Maintain a position despite pressure	We stood firm on our minimum margin.
Walk away	Leave negotiations without a deal	Sometimes walking away is the right move.

Negotiation is where these verbs get tested under real pressure, since tone and timing matter as much as vocabulary. Handling business English negotiation requires full practice dialogues for each stage of a negotiation, from opening positions to closing the deal.

3. Deadlines and Project Management (13 phrasal verbs)

Phrasal Verb	Meaning	Example
Catch up	Get back on schedule	The team worked overtime to catch up.
Check in	Give a progress update	Please check in with me on Friday.
Fall behind	Fail to meet the schedule	We fell behind because of the supply delay.
Hand in	Submit completed work	Please hand in your section by Friday noon.
Kick off	Begin a project or initiative	We kick off the new project next Monday.
Map out	Plan something in detail	Let’s map out the timeline before we start.
Move up	Reschedule to an earlier date	Can we move the deadline up by two days?
Phase out	Gradually stop or eliminate	The old system will be phased out by Q3.
Pick up	Speed up; increase momentum	Production needs to pick up if we want to hit the target.
Push back	Delay to a later date	The launch was pushed back by two weeks.
Scale up	Grow in scope or size	The pilot was successful, so we’re scaling up.
Sign off on	Give official approval	The director still needs to sign off on the budget.
Wind down	Bring to a gradual end	We are winding down operations in that region.

Notice “push back” means something different here than in the negotiations table above. That kind of context-dependent nuance is exactly what a tutor catches and a list can’t.Book a lesson with an English teacher to drill the distinction.

4. Emails and Communication (12 phrasal verbs)

Phrasal Verb	Meaning	Example
Bring up	Mention or introduce a topic	I wanted to bring up the schedule change.
Copy in	Add someone as a CC on an email	Please copy in the project manager.
Fill in	Provide missing information	Can you fill in the details from the call?
Flag up	Draw attention to a concern	I wanted to flag up a potential issue.
Get across	Communicate a message clearly	The main point is hard to get across in an email.
Get back to	Respond to someone later	I’ll get back to you by end of day.
Loop in	Include someone in a communication thread	Please loop in legal before you send this.
Pass on	Forward or relay information	I’ll pass on your message to the director.
Reach out	Contact someone proactively	She reached out to the supplier directly.
Reply all	Respond to all recipients on an email	Make sure you reply all on the announcement.
Spell out	Explain something in full detail	Let me spell out the requirements clearly.
Touch base	Make brief contact to check in	Let’s touch base before the end of the week.

Getting the phrasal verb right matters, but so does everything around it: how you open the email, how formal the greeting should be, and how you sign off. The guide on business letter greetings covers the formality choices that shape how professional your emails read before anyone gets to the phrasal verbs.

5. Decision-Making and Strategy (12 phrasal verbs)

Phrasal Verb	Meaning	Example
Act on	Take action based on advice or information	We need to act on the feedback immediately.
Carry out	Implement or execute	The team carried out the plan as discussed.
Cut back	Reduce in size or spending	They had to cut back on marketing spend.
Go ahead	Proceed with a plan or action	You can go ahead and send the proposal.
Opt for	Choose one option over others	We opted for the more conservative estimate.
Pull out	Withdraw from a project or agreement	Three investors pulled out before the close.
Put forward	Propose an idea or candidate	She put forward a new solution in the meeting.
Rule out	Eliminate as an option	We ruled out the cheaper supplier on quality grounds.
Take on	Accept a task, project, or person	We can’t take on more work this quarter.
Think through	Consider carefully before deciding	Let me think through the implications first.
Weigh up	Consider all factors before deciding	We need to weigh up the risks before committing.
Write off	Declare a loss; abandon as hopeless	The failed pilot has been written off as a learning exercise.

Decision-making vocabulary sounds stiff fast if you overuse it.Work with a business English online tutor to find the phrasing that fits how your team actually talks.

6. Reporting and Updates (10 phrasal verbs)

Phrasal Verb	Meaning	Example
Account for	Explain or justify	Can you account for the discrepancy in the figures?
Add up	Make logical sense; total correctly	The numbers just don’t add up.
Break down	Analyze into smaller parts	Break down the cost by department.
Build on	Use as a foundation for further development	We will build on the results from last year.
Come in	Arrive as a result (in reporting contexts)	The numbers came in under forecast.
Come out	Result; end up in a certain state	How did the customer survey come out?
Look into	Investigate	I will look into the billing error today.
Point out	Highlight or indicate	She pointed out that the timeline was unrealistic.
Report back	Give a status update after investigating	Can you report back on that by Thursday?
Stand at	Currently measure or total	Revenue stands at 12% above target this quarter.

Reporting phrases are easy to read and surprisingly easy to misuse under pressure. Practice a mock status update with online English teachers before you give the real one.

7. Problem-Solving (10 phrasal verbs)

Phrasal Verb	Meaning	Example
Figure out	Find a solution or understand something	We need to figure out why the process keeps failing.
Iron out	Resolve difficulties or disagreements	Let’s iron out the details before the launch.
Knock back	Reject or refuse	The proposal was knocked back by the review board.
Look for	Search for a solution	We are looking for a way to reduce the overhead.
Sort out	Resolve; organize	Can you sort out the supplier dispute this week?
Take up	Address a problem or challenge	I’d like to take up the issue of the delayed payments.
Track down	Find something or someone after searching	She finally tracked down the original contract.
Work around	Find an alternative to a problem	We’ll need to work around the system limitation.
Work out	Calculate; resolve through effort	Let’s work out the best approach together.
Come up against	Encounter an obstacle	We came up against a regulatory block we didn’t expect.

A business online English teacher walks through scenarios like these with you and corrects your phrasing in real time, which catches errors a self-study list can’t.

8. Professional Growth and Workplace Relationships (14 phrasal verbs)

Phrasal Verb	Meaning	Example
Branch out	Expand into new areas	The agency branched out into digital marketing.
Build up	Develop or increase gradually	She built up a strong reputation over five years.
Burn out	Exhaust oneself through overwork	He burned out after managing three projects at once.
Carry on	Continue with something	Please carry on with the task while I’m in the meeting.
Come across	Give a certain impression	She came across as confident in the interview.
Get ahead	Make professional progress	He works long hours to get ahead.
Get along with	Have a good working relationship	She gets along well with her team.
Keep up with	Stay current; maintain pace	It’s hard to keep up with all the industry changes.
Move on	Progress to a new role or stage	After five years, he decided to move on.
Move up	Get promoted	She moved up to regional director last year.
Step down	Resign from a position	The CEO stepped down after the quarterly results.
Take on board	Accept and consider feedback	He took the criticism on board and revised the report.
Turn down	Decline an offer	She turned down the promotion to stay with her team.
Network with	Build professional connections	Take time to network with peers at the conference.

These are the phrases you’ll lean on in performance reviews and career conversations. Start your session with English teachers specializing in business English and rehearse how you’d use them in your own career story.

Getting these phrases into your active vocabulary

Recognizing a phrase on a list and using it under pressure in a real meeting are two different things. The fastest way to move a phrase from passive recognition to active use is to practice it in context: writing emails with it, using it in a call, or drilling it in conversation with someone who can correct you when it sounds wrong. For more on English grammar rules and exercises that support correct phrasal verb use in business emails and reports, this guide to business English grammar exercises gives you structured practice with answers, and business English vocabulary rounds things out with 500+ terms across major workplace domains. italki’s tutor network includes a dedicated pool of business English specialists who work with professionals at every level, drawn from a broader base of 30,000+ tutors trusted by 10 million+ learners worldwide. Learn faster with live correction from a business English tutor who catches errors before they cost you credibility in a real meeting, backed by italki’s network of 30,000+ expert tutors trusted by over 10 million learners worldwide.Book a trial lesson today and start using these phrasal verbs in real business conversation.

FAQ

Are business English phrasal verbs formal or informal? They vary. “Please find attached” is formal. “Let’s circle back on that” is semi-formal and very common in meetings. “I’ll flag it up” works across most professional registers. The best way to judge is to notice which phrases your workplace’s native English speakers use most. Do British and American business English use the same phrasal verbs? Mostly yes, with some regional differences. “Touch base” is very American. “Flag up” is more British. “Loop in” is common globally. When in doubt, prefer the phrases you hear from the specific colleagues or clients you work with. How many of these phrasal verbs should I focus on at once? Pick the ten most relevant to your specific job function and practice those first. A project manager will need “kick off,” “sign off on,” and “fall behind” more urgently than a sales professional who needs “come to terms,” “settle on,” and “walk away.”