follow-up
noun
the act of following up.
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follow-up
American
[fol-oh-uhp]
/ ˈfɒl oʊˌʌp /
noun
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follow-ups
plural
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the act of following up.
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an action or thing that serves to increase the effectiveness of a previous one, as a second or subsequent letter, phone call, or visit.
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Also called follow. Journalism.
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a news story providing additional information on a story or article previously published.
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Also called supplementary story. Also called sidebar. a minor news story used to supplement a related story of major importance.
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adjective
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designed or serving to follow up, especially to increase the effectiveness of a previous action.
a follow-up interview; a follow-up offer.
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of or relating to action that follows an initial treatment, course of study, etc..
follow-up care for mental patients; a follow-up survey.
follow up
British
verb
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to pursue or investigate (a person, evidence, etc) closely
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to continue (action) after a beginning, esp to increase its effect
noun
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something done to reinforce an initial action
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( as modifier )
a follow-up letter
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med a routine examination of a patient at various intervals after medical or surgical treatment
follow up
Idioms
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Carry to completion. For example, I'm following up their suggestions with concrete proposals . Also see follow through .
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Increase the effectiveness or enhance the success of something by further action. For example, She followed up her interview with a phone call . [Late 1700s]
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of follow-up
First recorded in 1920–25; noun, adj. use of verb phrase follow up
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Its follow-up, “Christmas of Many Colors: Circle of Love,” received an Emmy nomination and netted a hit for country singer Jennifer Nettles, who plays Parton’s mother in the films.
From Salon ● Aug. 26, 2026
She recorded 1987’s acclaimed “Trio” album with Linda Ronstadt and Emmylou Harris, and it spun off four top 10 country hits; both “Trio” and its follow-up, 1999’s “Trio II,” won Grammy awards.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 25, 2026
Asked as a follow-up if she had any thoughts at all on DACA, Graham said, “Not right now.”
From Slate ● Aug. 25, 2026
It is then sent back to the NHS and if high-risk HPV is found, individuals will be invited to book a follow-up cervical screening appointment.
From BBC ● Aug. 24, 2026
Mr. Tobin tells Mama we’ll have a follow-up meeting when I come back.
From "Isaiah Dunn Is My Hero" by Kelly J. Baptist
After Esme Gordon-Craig’s internship ended, she took to LinkedIn to follow up with a colleague, suggesting they continue their conversation on career paths over drinks.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 19, 2026
Fitzpatrick went on to follow up his success at The Country Club in Brookline by winning the US Open on the same course in 2022.
From BBC ● Aug. 16, 2026
What’s relatively rare in music is for a reunited band to quickly follow up a comeback album with a second one.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 14, 2026
The official said Trump would then "follow up" with Putin.
From Barron's ● Jul. 6, 2026
“Better follow up and see what he's doin'.” The procession moved off sedately in King Pellinore’s direction, following his erratic course by the fresh tracks in the snow.
From "The Once and Future King" by T. H. White
The follow-ups, “Be Her” and “I Can’t Love You Anymore,” have also been popular.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 26, 2026
Moreover, the follow-ups indicated to Disney that other Pixar franchises could be a viable revenue stream, no matter the public’s response to the films.
From Salon ● Jun. 6, 2026
The British agent had not appeared in a game title for more than a decade before "First Light" -- with follow-ups to 1997 Nintendo 64 mega-hit "Goldeneye" leaving most players neither shaken nor stirred.
From Barron's ● May 26, 2026
While the original papers claimed advances for quantum computing and made their way into top scientific journals, the individual follow-ups could not make it past the editors at those same journals.
From Science Daily ● Mar. 29, 2026
He read it, a few follow-ups, and comments from many other papers.
From "My Side of the Mountain" by Jean Craighead George
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
