🎯 Lesson Goal
In American tech companies, developers rarely use formal words like "synchronize" or "deploy" in casual Slack messages or daily stand-ups. They use phrasal verbs.
- Understand and use casual tech vocabulary natively in meetings.
- Report your daily blockers in Jira or stand-ups with confidence.
- Ask for help in pull requests using natural phrasing.
🔥 Warm-up: Natural Sounding English
Read the sentences below. Which ones sound like a textbook, and which ones sound like a native software engineer in a Slack channel?
| Sentence A (Formal) | Sentence B (Phrasal Verb) | What is the difference? |
|---|---|---|
| "I encountered an error." | "I ran into an error." | Sentence B is much more common in daily conversation. |
| "Can we synchronize later?" | "Can we sync up later?" | Sentence B is the standard phrasing in agile teams. |
| "I resolved the problem." | "I figured out the problem." | Sentence B sounds more natural when discussing debugging. |
📘 Tech Vocabulary List
Study this table before moving on to the practice section.
| Phrasal Verb | Context | Definition & Spanish / Example |
|---|---|---|
| roll out (sep) | Deploy | To deploy or release a new feature to users. En Español: Lanzar, desplegar "We're rolling out the new API on Tuesday." |
| roll back (sep) | Deploy | To revert software to a previous state. En Español: Revertir, dar marcha atrás "The build failed, so we had to roll it back." |
| run into (insep) | Debugging | To unexpectedly encounter an error or issue. En Español: Toparse con (un problema) "I ran into a CORS error while testing." |
| figure out (sep) | Debugging | To solve or understand a complex problem. En Español: Resolver, descifrar "Did you figure out why the database is lagging?" |
| track down (sep) | Debugging | To find the root cause of an elusive bug. En Español: Rastrear, localizar "It took me three hours to track down the leak." |
| break down (sep) | Agile | To divide a large Jira ticket into smaller tasks. En Español: Desglosar, dividir "We need to break down this epic first." |
| sync up (insep) | Meetings | To meet briefly to align on progress. En Español: Sincronizarse, cuadrar "Let's sync up after stand-up today." |
| walk through (sep) | Code Review | To guide someone step-by-step (e.g., in code). En Español: Explicar paso a paso "Can you walk me through this pull request?" |
| point out (sep) | Code Review | To bring attention to something specific. En Español: Señalar, hacer notar "Thanks for pointing out that missing test case." |
| wrap up (sep) | Meetings | To finish a meeting or task. En Español: Concluir, terminar "Let's wrap up this meeting so we can code." |
🧾 Real-World Context
Example Set 1: Daily Stand-Up
Fede: "Yesterday I ran into a bug with the auth token. I figured out a workaround, but I’d like to sync up with backend to confirm."
Example Set 2: Sprints & Deployments
Ericka: "This feature is too big. Let's break it down before we assign points. Once it's ready, we can roll it out on Friday."
✏️ Practice A — Fill in the Blank
Type the missing word or phrase to complete the tech sentence.
✅ Practice B — Multiple Choice
Choose the best option for the context.
🔎 Practice C — Error Correction
Rewrite each sentence correctly. Watch out for wrong prepositions or conjugations!
🧩 Practice D — Unscramble
Click the words in the correct order to form a natural sentence you might hear in a meeting.
🔄 Practice E — Transformation
Rewrite the sentence so it has a similar meaning, using the exact keyword given.
🗣️ Your Turn & Beyond
Use this section for personalized practice and real-world application at your job.
🗣️ Speaking Prompt
Imagine you are in your daily stand-up meeting. Describe what you worked on yesterday, a blocker you ran into, and what you plan to do today.
🏡 Outside of Class
Real-World Challenge:
- Notice: Pay attention to Slack channels at work (e.g., #engineering or #general).
- Do: Write down 3 phrasal verbs your English-speaking colleagues use this week.