follow-up

[ fol-oh-uhp ]

/ ˈfɒl oʊˌʌp /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR follow-up ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

the act of following up.

an action or thing that serves to increase the effectiveness of a previous one, as a second or subsequent letter, phone call, or visit.

Also called follow. Journalism.

a news story providing additional information on a story or article previously published.
Also called sidebar, supplementary story. a minor news story used to supplement a related story of major importance.Compare feature story(def 1), human-interest story, shirttail.

adjective

designed or serving to follow up, especially to increase the effectiveness of a previous action: a follow-up interview; a follow-up offer.

of or relating to action that follows an initial treatment, course of study, etc.: follow-up care for mental patients; a follow-up survey.

RELATED WORDS

Nearby words

follow through, follow up, follow-my-leader, follow-on, follow-through, followup, follower, followership, following, following bougie, followship

Origin of follow-up

First recorded in 1920–25; noun, adj. use of verb phrase follow up

Definition for followup (2 of 2)

follow

[ fol-oh ]

/ ˈfɒl oʊ /

verb (used with object)

to come after in sequence, order of time, etc.: The speech follows the dinner.

to go or come after; move behind in the same direction: Drive ahead, and I'll follow you.

to accept as a guide or leader; accept the authority of or give allegiance to: Many Germans followed Hitler.

to conform to, comply with, or act in accordance with; obey: to follow orders; to follow advice.

to imitate or copy; use as an exemplar: They follow the latest fads.

to move forward along (a road, path, etc.): Follow this road for a mile.

to come after as a result or consequence; result from: Reprisals often follow victory.

to go after or along with (a person) as companion.

to go in pursuit of: to follow an enemy.

to try for or attain to: to follow an ideal.

to engage in or be concerned with as a pursuit: He followed the sea as his true calling.

to watch the movements, progress, or course of: to follow a bird in flight.

to watch the development of or keep up with: to follow the news.

to keep up with and understand (an argument, story, etc.): Do you follow me?

verb (used without object)

to come next after something else in sequence, order of time, etc.

to happen or occur after something else; come next as an event: After the defeat great disorder followed.

to attend or serve.

to go or come after a person or thing in motion.

to result as an effect; occur as a consequence: It follows then that he must be innocent.

noun

the act of following.

Billiards, Pool. follow shot(def 2).

follow-up(def 3).

Verb Phrases

follow out, to carry to a conclusion; execute: They followed out their orders to the letter.

follow through,

to carry out fully, as a stroke of a club in golf, a racket in tennis, etc.
to continue an effort, plan, proposal, policy, etc., to its completion.

follow up,

to pursue closely and tenaciously.
to increase the effectiveness of by further action or repetition.
to pursue to a solution or conclusion.

Origin of follow

before 900; Middle English folwen, Old English folgian; cognate with Old Saxon folgon, Old High German folgēn, folgōn (German folgen)

SYNONYMS FOR follow

3 obey.

4 heed, observe.

8 accompany, attend.

9 pursue, chase; trail, track, trace.

19 arise, proceed. Follow, ensue, result, succeed imply coming after something else, in a natural sequence. Follow is the general word: We must wait to see what follows. A detailed account follows. Ensue implies a logical sequence, what might be expected normally to come after a given act, cause, etc.: When the power lines were cut, a paralysis of transportation ensued. Result emphasizes the connection between a cause or event and its effect, consequence, or outcome: The accident resulted in injuries to those involved. Succeed implies coming after in time, particularly coming into a title, office, etc.: Formerly the oldest son succeeded to his father's title.

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ANTONYMS FOR follow

1 precede.

2, 3 lead.

4 disregard.

9 flee.

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Related formsfol·low·a·ble, adjectiveun·fol·low·a·ble, adjectiveun·fol·lowed, adjectivewell-fol·lowed, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for followup

Choosing to strike while the iron was hot, Future announced his followup to Pluto, Future Hendrix, right away.
Future Makes Us Rethink Everything We Thought We Knew About Rap Artists|Luke Hopping|December 15, 2014|DAILY BEAST
It was three years between the releases of Pieces of You and its followup, Spirit.
Jewel Is Back in ‘Ring of Fire’ and You Should Be Very Excited|Kevin Fallon|May 24, 2013|DAILY BEAST
He took meeting after meeting with giddy Hollywood executives and pitched them his followup—a sci-fi epic called A Topiary.
‘Upstream Color,’ Shane Carruth’s Sci-Fi Drama, Is the Year’s Craziest Film (So Far)|Marlow Stern|April 6, 2013|DAILY BEAST
“At the end of the day, EVERYTHING I do has to drive the business goals,” Hadley wrote in a followup email, emphasis his.
Microsoft's Mr. Fun|Peter Lauria|December 5, 2010|DAILY BEAST

A followup item at The Daily Caller reports that hefty bar tab “was part of a night of cultivating young Republican donors.”
The GOP's Dirty Sexy Money|Conor Friedersdorf|March 29, 2010|DAILY BEAST
And what is the reason, if any, for staying that distance behind the President's followup car?
Warren Commission (2 of 26): Hearings Vol. II (of 15)|The President's Commission on the Assassination of President Kennedy
My recollection is that it was to follow the President's car, either behind the followup car or behind the Vice President's car.
Warren Commission (4 of 26): Hearings Vol. IV (of 15)|The President's Commission on the Assassination of President Kennedy
So as a followup, we had our legal attache in Paris make inquiry to see whether he had enrolled in this college.
Warren Commission (5 of 26): Hearings Vol. V (of 15)|The President's Commission on the Assassination of President Kennedy
Is the President's followup car a specially constructed automobile?
Warren Commission (2 of 26): Hearings Vol. II (of 15)|The President's Commission on the Assassination of President Kennedy
And what is the differential between the jump seats and the rear seat on the Secret Service followup car?
Warren Commission (5 of 26): Hearings Vol. V (of 15)|The President's Commission on the Assassination of President Kennedy

British Dictionary definitions for followup

follow

/ (ˈfɒləʊ) /

verb

to go or come after in the same directionhe followed his friend home

(tr) to accompany; attendshe followed her sister everywhere

to come after as a logical or natural consequence

(tr) to keep to the course or track ofshe followed the towpath

(tr) to act in accordance with; obeyto follow instructions

(tr) to accept the ideas or beliefs of (a previous authority, etc)he followed Donne in most of his teachings

to understand (an explanation, argument, etc)the lesson was difficult to follow

to watch closely or continuouslyshe followed his progress carefully

(tr) to have a keen interest into follow athletics

(tr) to help in the cause of or accept the leadership ofthe men who followed Napoleon

(tr) to choose to receive messages posted by (a blogger or microblogger)I've been following her online

(tr) rare to earn a living at or into follow the Navy

follow suit cards

to play a card of the same suit as the card played immediately before it
to do the same as someone else

noun

billiards snooker

a forward spin imparted to a cue ball causing it to roll after the object ball
a shot made in this way

Derived Formsfollowable, adjective

Word Origin for follow

Old English folgian; related to Old Frisian folgia, Old Saxon folgōn, Old High German folgēn

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for followup

follow

Old English folgian, fylgan "follow, accompany; follow after, pursue," also "obey, apply oneself to a practice or calling," from West Germanic *fulg- (cf. Old Saxon folgon, Old Frisian folgia, Middle Dutch volghen, Dutch volgen, Old High German folgen, German folgen, Old Norse fylgja "to follow").

Probably originally a compound, *full-gan with a sense of "full-going;" the sense then shifting to "serve, go with as an attendant" (cf. fulfill). Related: Followed; following. To follow one's nose "go straight on" first attested 1590s. "The full phrase is, 'Follow your nose, and you are sure to go straight.' " [Farmer].

Idioms and Phrases with followup

follow

In addition to the idioms beginning with follow

follow along
follow in someone's footsteps
follow one's nose
follow out
follow suit
follow the crowd
follow through
follow up

also see:

as follows
camp follower
hard act to follow