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Business vocabularyphrasal verb · /tʃek ɪn/
In simple English

To record your presence using a system or app, or to have a quick conversation with someone to share updates and see how work is progressing.

Someone heard "check in" at work and wants to know if it means arriving or having a quick meeting.

At a glanceCEFR A2–B1
Commonness
Versatility
FormalityCasualFormalNeutral
Spoken ↔ WrittenSpokenWrittenBoth
Directness ↔ DiplomaticDirectDiplomaticNeutral
Region

Say it like this

Let me check in with the team before we decide.
I'll check in on that ticket later today.
Can we check in tomorrow morning?
Don't forget to check in when you arrive at the office.
I just wanted to check in and see how you're doing.

Real examples

Standup

"I'll check in with the backend team about the API changes."

Slack message

"Hey, just checking in on the deployment. Any updates?"

GitHub PR

"Checking in to see if there's anything else needed for this PR."

Jira ticket

"Checked in with QA—they'll start testing tomorrow."

Retrospective

"We should check in more often during long sprints."

Sprint planning

"Let's check in mid-sprint to see if we're on track."

Pair programming

"Let me check in my changes before we continue."

Don't say this

I will check in you tomorrow.
I will check in with you tomorrow.When checking in with a person, use 'check in with [someone]'.
Please check in me about the project.
Please check in with me about the project.The preposition 'with' is required when the object is a person.
I checked in the code yesterday.
I checked in the code yesterday. / I committed the code yesterday.In version control, 'check in' can mean commit—but many teams prefer 'commit' to avoid confusion.

Other forms

base form

check in

"I need to check in with my manager."

third person

checks in

"She checks in with the team every morning."

past tense

checked in

"I checked in with the client yesterday."

present participle

checking in

"Just checking in to see how things are going."

noun

check-in

"We have a weekly check-in meeting on Mondays."

Often used with

check in withUsed when connecting with a person: 'check in with the team'
check in onUsed when monitoring progress: 'check in on the deployment'
quick check-inA brief meeting or conversation for updates
daily check-inA regular check-in that happens every day (like standup)
check-in meetingA scheduled meeting to share updates and discuss progress

Similar words

touch baseMore casual; often used in US offices. Similar meaning.
follow upMore action-focused; implies getting an update on something specific.
sync upImplies mutual exchange of information; often scheduled.
catch upMore casual; can include personal conversation, not just work.

Opposites

check outsign outdisconnectlog off

More words

Questions

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