What does 'carry on with' mean in a work meeting?

'Carry on with' means to continue doing something. In meetings, it tells the team to keep working on a task or project, often despite problems or changes.

Is 'carry on with' formal or casual English?

'Carry on with' is neutral. It works in both casual Slack messages and formal meetings. You can use it with your manager or teammates.

Can I say 'carry on' without 'with'?

Yes, but the meaning changes slightly. 'Carry on' alone means 'continue in general.' When you add 'with', you specify what to continue: 'carry on with the task.'

What is the difference between 'carry on with' and 'continue with'?

'Continue with' is slightly more formal. 'Carry on with' sounds more natural in everyday speech. Both mean the same thing. Use either in standups or Slack.

How do I use 'carry on with' in a standup?

Say what you will continue working on: 'Today I'll carry on with the API integration.' It tells your team you're continuing previous work.

Is 'carry on with' used in American English?

Yes, 'carry on with' is used in both American and British English. It's common in tech teams worldwide.

Carry On With Meaning in Business

Commonness
Versatility
Formality	CasualFormalNeutral
Spoken ↔ Written	SpokenWrittenBoth
Directness ↔ Diplomatic	DirectDiplomaticNeutral
Region

Say it like this

✓Let's carry on with the migration after lunch.

✓Can you carry on with the testing while I handle the review?

✓Despite the API issues, we need to carry on with the release plan.

✓I'll carry on with the refactoring tomorrow.

✓Should we carry on with this approach or try something new?

Real examples

Standup

"I'll carry on with the authentication module today and hopefully finish by EOD."

Slack message

"Hey, can you carry on with the code review? I need to join another call."

GitHub PR

"Good feedback. I'll carry on with the suggested changes and push a new commit."

Jira ticket

"Carrying on with the implementation after resolving the dependency issue."

Retrospective

"We decided to carry on with the current sprint structure since it's working well."

Sprint planning

"Let's carry on with the unfinished stories from last sprint first."

Pair programming

"Go ahead and carry on with the function—I'll watch and give feedback."

Don't say this

✕I will carry on the project.

✓I will carry on with the project.— The preposition 'with' is required when you mention the task or activity.

✕Let's carry on with to test.

✓Let's carry on with testing.— Use a noun or gerund (-ing form) after 'carry on with', not 'to + verb'.

✕I carried on with it yesterday and finished.

✓I continued it yesterday and finished.— 'Carry on with' implies ongoing work, not completed work. Use 'continued' or 'finished' instead.

Other forms

base form

carry on with

"We should carry on with the plan."

present continuous

carrying on with

"I'm carrying on with the debugging."

past simple

carried on with

"She carried on with the task despite the blocker."

future

will carry on with

"I'll carry on with this after standup."

Often used with

carry on with the workMost common general usage

carry on with the planUsed when sticking to an existing strategy

carry on with the taskSpecific to individual work items

carry on with the projectFor larger, ongoing efforts

carry on with the implementationTechnical context for coding work

Similar words

continue withMore formal, same meaning

proceed withSlightly more formal, often used in meetings

keep going withMore casual, same meaning

press on withImplies pushing through difficulties

go ahead withOften used when giving permission to continue

Opposites

stoppauseput on holddropabandon

Practice

Try it

4 quick exercises

Choose the most natural response

1. Your manager asks: 'The client changed the requirements. What should we do?' Which reply sounds most natural?

I will carry on the project.Let's carry on with the current plan until we get more details.We carry on with to work.I'm carrying on it.

Find the error

2. Which sentence has a mistake?

I'll carry on with the testing after lunch.She's carrying on with the documentation.Let's carry on with to implement the feature.We carried on with the sprint as planned.

Complete the sentence

3. Despite the setbacks, we need to carry on ___ the project.

Rewrite more naturally

4. Rewrite using 'carry on with': 'I will continue working on the bug fix tomorrow.'

More words

continue proceed blocker unblock pick up follow up wrap up

Questions

Quick poll

Have you said "carry on with" in a standup this week?

Want more structured practice like this? Our English for Programmers course covers real workplace English in depth.

Your badges

XLinkedIn

← Back to home