Work Phrasal Verbs
Phrasal verbs are everywhere in the workplace. Knowing them will help you sound natural in meetings, emails, and everyday office conversations.
Starting and Planning
| Phrasal Verb | German | Example |
|---|---|---|
| set up | einrichten/organisieren | Can you set up the meeting room? |
| kick off | starten/beginnen | We’ll kick off the project on Monday. |
| draw up | ausarbeiten/erstellen | Please draw up a proposal. |
| map out | planen/skizzieren | Let’s map out the timeline together. |
| take on | übernehmen | She took on a new project. |
Meetings and Communication
| Phrasal Verb | German | Example |
|---|---|---|
| run through | durchgehen | Let me run through the agenda. |
| bring up | ansprechen | Can I bring up a concern? |
| follow up | nachfassen | I’ll follow up with the client. |
| sum up | zusammenfassen | Could you sum up the main points? |
| fill in | informieren | Fill me in on what I missed. |
Progress and Results
| Phrasal Verb | German | Example |
|---|---|---|
| catch up | aufholen/nachholen | I need to catch up on emails. |
| fall behind | zurückfallen | We’re falling behind schedule. |
| carry out | durchführen | Carry out the instructions carefully. |
| wrap up | abschließen | Let’s wrap up the meeting. |
| hand in | einreichen/abgeben | Hand in your report by Friday. |
Problems and Solutions
| Phrasal Verb | German | Example |
|---|---|---|
| sort out | klären/lösen | We need to sort out this issue. |
| deal with | umgehen mit | Who will deal with the complaint? |
| come up with | sich ausdenken | She came up with a great solution. |
| look into | untersuchen | I’ll look into the problem. |
Many work phrasal verbs are separable: you can say “fill the team in” or “fill in the team”. When the object is a pronoun, it must go in the middle: “fill them in” (not “fill in them”).