Phrasal verb
follow sth up
Definition
phrasal verb. to take further action after a first step, or to find out more about something you started.
phrasal verb. to pursue a matter further or take additional action after an initial encounter or investigation; often used in professional or medical contexts.
Examples
“I will follow up your suggestion with a phone call tomorrow.”
“The doctor asked me to follow up our appointment with a blood test next week.”
“The investigative journalist decided to follow up the anonymous tip, eventually uncovering a significant financial scandal within the local government.”
Examples
simple
“I will follow up your suggestion with a phone call tomorrow.”
contextual
“The doctor asked me to follow up our appointment with a blood test next week.”
complex
“The investigative journalist decided to follow up the anonymous tip, eventually uncovering a significant financial scandal within the local government.”
Usage
often used with 'with' to specify the next action taken.
Teaching tip
contrast with 'follow' (to go behind); 'follow up' implies completing a process or checking on progress after an initial event.
Pitfall
I need to follow up it.
I need to follow it up.
when using a pronoun like 'it', it must go between the verb and the particle.
Phrasal verb
Particles
up
Separability
optional
Pattern
follow + (object) + up
Synonyms
Antonyms
Grammar
Scan code
englishreference.com/q/follow-sth-up