International English Test Editorial Team·27 Dec 2023·2 min read
Explore work-related English phrasal verbs to enhance your speech and expand your vocabulary.
How many work-related English phrasal verbs are in your repertoire? Looking to add vibrancy to your English speech and enrich your vocabulary with practical verbs? You’re in the right place!
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Definition: To terminate the employment of workers; (US) to discharge employees; (UK) to dismiss employees.
Example: They had to lay off workers.
Knuckle down
Definition: Cease distractions and concentrate on work.
Example: It’s time we knuckled down.
Hand in
Definition: To hand in or deliver completed work.
Example: He’s already handed in his report.
Carry out
Definition: Engage in work, carry out a job.
Example: The building work was carried out by a local contractor.
Take over
Definition: To receive; to assume control of something; when one company is assimilated by another company.
Example: Toshiba is taking over the smaller company.
Take on
Definition: To bring in new employees; to recruit.
Example:: We’re taking on new staff at the moment.
To lay off workers means to terminate their employment. In American English it carries the sense of discharging employees, while in British English it means to dismiss them. A natural example is "They had to lay off workers", which usually describes job cuts made for business reasons rather than for individual poor performance.
These two look similar but mean different things. Take over means to assume control of something, often when one company absorbs another, as in "Toshiba is taking over the smaller company". Take on means to bring in new employees or recruit, as in "We're taking on new staff at the moment". One is about control, the other about hiring.
Knuckle down means to stop distractions and concentrate seriously on your work. You might say "It's time we knuckled down" when a deadline is near or when a group needs to get focused. It suggests a deliberate shift from messing around or being unproductive toward real, sustained effort on the task in front of you.
Knock off means to conclude the workday and stop working. A common example is "Let's knock off early tonight", meaning to finish before the usual time. It is informal and conversational, used between colleagues rather than in formal writing, and it refers to ending a shift rather than completing a particular task.
They are opposites. Slack off means to exert less effort or to be lazy, as in "Workers usually slack off on Fridays". Knuckle down means the reverse, to stop distractions and concentrate hard on the job. So if someone tells you to stop slacking off and knuckle down, they want you to go from low effort to focused, productive work.
Hand in means to deliver completed work to someone, as in "He's already handed in his report". Carry out means to perform or do a job, as in "The building work was carried out by a local contractor". You carry out the work while it is happening, then hand it in once it is finished and ready to be submitted.
Call off means to cancel an event that was already arranged. For example, "She's just called off the meeting" tells people the meeting will no longer take place. It works for meetings, plans, deals, and other scheduled events, and it implies an active decision to stop something rather than simply a failure to show up.
International English Test Editorial Team
ALTE Associate Member · UK English assessment provider · Est. 2023
