The phrasal verb "follow up" is prevalent in both informal and formal speech, though it tends to have more prominence in professional and formal contexts. In business, healthcare, and customer service, "follow up" is commonly used to refer to the act of maintaining communication after an initial meeting or contact to ensure continuity or address outstanding issues. It is frequently used in emails and formal correspondence to indicate that one is checking in for updates or next steps. Informally, it's used to imply checking back or pursuing further information about something previously discussed. The usage often involves ensuring that previous tasks or conversations lead to subsequent actions, emphasizing diligence and persistence. Additionally, "follow up" can also be transformed into a noun, as in "a follow-up meeting," which underscores its flexibility in different grammatical structures.
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Follow up followup
/ˈfɑːloʊ ʌp/
A subsequent action or response meant to continue or complete a previous one
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Follow up as a verb is an action you take to pursue more information or continue communication.
Follow-up with a hyphen is a noun or adjective, typically used to describe a subsequent report or meeting related to an earlier one.
Followup (though less commonly accepted) is often mistakenly used as both a noun and adjective, but its better to stick with the hyphenated follow-up' for these situations.
Remember, if youre doing something (a verb), its two words: follow up.
If youre talking about the thing itself (noun or adjective), its one hyphenated word: follow-up.