6 Must-Know Business English Phrasal Verbs to Sound More Natural at Work (With Examples)

Welcome to the Business English Phrasal Verbs Quiz!

Clear communication is key in any workplace. You need to give updates, share ideas, and make sure people understand you. In this article, you’ll learn six useful Business English phrasal verbs to help you sound more natural and confident. Let’s dive in!

Today’s Focus:

Learn 6 essential Business English phrasal verbs to express your ideas clearly, give feedback smoothly, and handle meetings like a pro.

Today’s Challenge:

Picture this! You had a meeting, and your coworker explained a problem but forgot some important points. What phrasal verb would you use?

A) went through

B) left out

C) held onto

D) handed out

Pick the best answer and check how well you know these phrasal verbs!

Did you get it right?

GO THROUGH

phrasal verb

to carefully examine something

• Before we actually decide on anything, we'd better go through the contract again.

• The manager will go through the report to check for any errors.

• We should go through the data before presenting it to the client.

• She always goes through her emails first thing in the morning.

• I’ll need to go through these documents before the meeting.

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LEAVE OUT

phrasal verb

to not include something

• Don’t leave out any details when explaining the project to the team.

• She accidentally left out her contact details in the email.

• The manager felt something was left out in the proposal, which delayed the decision.

• The instructions were unclear because they left out several critical steps.

HOLD ONTO

phrasal verb

to keep something in your possession

• You should hold onto your receipts for tax purposes.

• It’s important to hold onto your ideas even if others don’t agree.

• He advised us to hold onto our original plans for the next quarter.

• She’s trying to hold onto her position despite the recent layoffs.

HAND OUT

phrasal verb

to distribute something to a group of people

• The team leader will hand out the new project guidelines during the meeting.

• The assistant handed out the brochures at the conference.

• Please hand out the materials before the workshop begins.

• The manager asked the receptionist to hand out the name tags to the attendees.

• They handed out surveys to gather feedback after the seminar.

That's right! The correct answer is B) left out.

Learn More Essential Business English Phrasal Verbs

Great job on the quiz! Now, let’s look at some more useful Business English phrasal verbs. These expressions are very common at work, and they’ll help you sound more natural when talking to coworkers, clients, or managers.

Please follow the steps below.

Step 1. Match the phrasal verbs to the definitions.

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Step 2. Read the phrasal verbs and their definitions.

BRING something UP

phrasal verb

to start talking about a topic, idea, or problem

• I’ll bring this up in tomorrow’s meeting.

• She brought up a good question about the new policy.

• Let’s bring it up with the client next week.

POINT something OUT

phrasal verb

to mention or show something important so others notice it

• Thanks for pointing out that error in the report.

• He pointed out some areas we need to improve.

• I just wanted to point out that the deadline is next Friday.

GET a message/ point ACROSS

phrasal verb to make someone understand what you mean

• We need to get our main message across clearly.

• She’s good at getting her ideas across to the team.

• I hope I got my point across during the presentation.

FOLLOW UP (with, on something)

phrasal verb

to contact someone again after an earlier action or message

• I’ll follow up with you after the meeting.

• Can you follow up on that email from the client?

• She always follows up to make sure everyone is on track.

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GO OVER something

phrasal verb

to review something carefully

• Let’s go over the plan one more time.

• We need to go over the budget before we submit it.

• The manager went over the new guidelines with us.

LEAVE something OUT

phrasal verb

to not include something or someone

• Please don’t leave out any important details.

• I think you left out a few numbers in this report.

• They left out some key points in the presentation.

Step 3. Choose the correct phrasal verb to complete each sentence.

1.

I sent the proposal last week, so I’ll _____ tomorrow to see if they have any feedback.

A) bring up B) follow up C) point out D) leave out

2.

I didn’t want to _____ the budget issues during lunch, so I waited until the meeting.

A) follow up

B) leave out

C) bring up

D) get across

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3.

During the presentation, Mika _____ that our sales numbers were higher than expected this quarter.

A) went over

B) followed up

C) got across

D) pointed out

4.

It took a few tries, but he finally _____ his concerns _____ to upper management.

A) got ... across

B) went ... over

C) left ... out

D) followed .... up

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5.

Before we sign the contract, our lawyer wants to _____ every detail of it.

A) follow up

B) go over

C) get across

D) leave out

6.

When you send the summary to the client, make sure you include the delivery timeline. Don’t _____.

A) go over it

B) leave it out

C) bring it up

D) get it across

Step 4. Leave us a comment! Write a sentence with one of the phrasal verbs and drop it in the comments below.

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