Circle back

SER-kul bak /ˈsɜːkl bæk/
Informal Polite

What it really means

Office jargon meaning to return to a topic later, e.g. 'let's circle back on this next week'. In meetings it can politely park an idea — and sometimes it is a soft way of saying the topic may quietly be dropped.

Chinese explanation
办公室行话,意为稍后再回到某个话题,如“let's circle back next week”(我们下周再谈这个)。开会时常用来礼貌地把议题先搁置——有时也是委婉表示这事可能不了了之。

Example conversation

A: We're out of time — can we circle back to the budget on Monday? B: Sure, I'll put it on next week's agenda.
A:时间不够了——预算的事我们周一再谈行吗? B:好的,我把它加到下周的议程里。

What you could say back

“Sure — I'll follow up with a calendar invite.”

Related phrases

Official sources

Rules and amounts change — confirm important details with the official source.
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Reviewed by the UK Decoded editorial team · Last checked 24 July 2026 · Report a mistake