Phrasal verbs for work and study: Spoken English: Zero to Fluent (Expert)

English often has two ways to say the same thing: a phrasal verb ("put off") and a single formal (औपचारिक) verb ("postpone"). Both are correct. Phrasal verbs sound spoken and friendly. One-word verbs sound formal and suit reports, official letters and emails to people you don't know.

Phrasal verb	Meaning	Hindi	Formal partner
carry out	do a task, test or survey	पूरा करना / अंजाम देना	conduct, perform
follow up	check again later; take the next step	दोबारा पूछना / आगे बढ़ाना	pursue
catch up	reach the level of others; meet and talk	बराबरी पर आना / मिलकर बात करना	(no exact partner)
deal with	handle a problem or a person	निपटना / संभालना	handle, manage
put off	move to a later time	टालना	postpone
bring up	start talking about a topic	कोई बात उठाना	raise, mention
point out	show or mention something important	ध्यान दिलाना	indicate, note
sort out	solve; organise	सुलझाना	resolve
come up with	think of an idea or plan	सोच निकालना	devise, propose
back up	save an extra copy; support someone	बैकअप लेना / साथ देना	support
fill in / fill out	complete a form	फ़ॉर्म भरना	complete
log in / log out	enter or leave an account	लॉग इन / लॉग आउट करना	(no partner)
sign up	register for something	नाम लिखवाना / रजिस्टर करना	register, enrol
step in	help or take control in a problem	बीच में आकर संभालना	intervene
take over	take control or responsibility	ज़िम्मेदारी ले लेना	assume
hand in	give work to a teacher or boss	जमा करना	submit
go through	read or check carefully; experience	ध्यान से पढ़ना / से गुज़रना	review, examine

Let me go through the report and get back to you.

Say it: let mee goh THROO the ri-PORT and get BAK to yoo

मुझे रिपोर्ट ध्यान से पढ़ने दीजिए, फिर मैं आपको बताता हूँ।

"Get back to you" = reply later. It is the natural replacement for "I will revert".

I'll follow up with the client tomorrow.

Say it: ail FOL-oh UP with the KLY-ent to-MOR-oh

मैं कल क्लाइंट से इस बारे में दोबारा बात करूँगा।

She came up with a great idea to cut costs.

Say it: shee kaym UP with a GRAYT ai-DEE-a to KUT KOSTS

उसने ख़र्च कम करने का एक बढ़िया तरीक़ा सोच निकाला।

I was on leave last week, so I need to catch up on my emails.

Say it: ai woz on LEEV laast WEEK, soh ai need to KACH UP on my EE-maylz

मैं पिछले हफ़्ते छुट्टी पर था, इसलिए मुझे अपने बाक़ी ईमेल देखने हैं।

Please fill in this form and hand it in at the counter.

Say it: pleez fil IN this FORM and HAND it IN at the KOWN-ter

कृपया यह फ़ॉर्म भरिए और काउंटर पर जमा कर दीजिए।

UK and India: fill in a form. US: fill out a form. Both are correct.

Don't worry, I'll sort it out.

Say it: DOHNT WUR-ee, ail SORT it OWT

चिंता मत करो, मैं इसे सुलझा दूँगा।

Put off, postpone and "prepone"

In India, "prepone" (move to an earlier time) is common and everyone understands it. Most people outside South Asia have never heard it. With them, say "bring forward" or "move it earlier". For a later time, say "put off", "push back" or, formally, "postpone".

Could we bring the meeting forward to Tuesday?

Say it: kud wee BRING the MEE-ting FOR-werd to TYOOZ-day?

क्या हम मीटिंग पहले करके मंगलवार को रख सकते हैं?

Use this instead of "prepone" with international colleagues.

Can we put off the call until Friday?

Say it: kan wee put OFF the KAWL un-TIL FRY-day?

क्या हम कॉल शुक्रवार तक टाल सकते हैं?

Formal email version: "Could we postpone the call to Friday?"

Idea	Spoken (meeting, chat)	Formal (email, report)
delay	Let's put it off till next week.	We will postpone the launch to next week.
mention	I'll bring it up in the meeting.	I will raise this issue in the meeting.
solve	Don't worry, we'll sort it out.	We will resolve the issue by Friday.
do	We carried out a quick check.	We conducted a full audit.
give	Hand it in by Friday.	Please submit it by Friday.

Think of it like this: Phrasal verbs and formal verbs are like a kurta and a blazer. Both are good clothes. You wear a kurta to a family function and a blazer to a board meeting. Say "sort out" in the team chat and "resolve" in the report to the client.

Careful: Common slips: "fill up the form" (in standard English, "fill up" is for a tank: "fill up the car"; for forms, say "fill in" or "fill out"), "postpone it to later" (postpone already means later), "I will revert back" (say "I'll get back to you"). Also note: the verb is two words, "log in", but the noun is one word, "my login details".

Tip: Take one work or college email you wrote recently. Find two formal verbs and say the same message aloud to a friend using phrasal verbs. Then do the reverse with a chat message. This trains you to switch.

Phrasal verbs for work and study

Explanation

Put off, postpone and "prepone"

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In real life: A team meeting in an IT office in Pune

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