Learners often misuse strike up to describe the start of a formal procedure. In this workplace sense, "strike up" starts a social connection. Common objects include a conversation, friendship, or working relationship. Formal processes usually take more exact verbs. You do not normally strike up a contract, meeting, audit, or lawsuit.
Quick check
Social opening or court filing?
You used "Strike Up" well.
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Find my vocabulary gaps →There is more to "Strike Up" than it seems.
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Take the free assessment →The test isn't importance, it's how the beginning happened
The test is not whether the result matters. A new friendship may matter enormously. Ask instead how the event began. Did people open a social connection or follow a planned, negotiated, or legal process? Parties negotiate, sign, or enter into contracts. Teams schedule, open, or hold meetings. A claimant may file or bring a lawsuit. The best legal verb depends on the jurisdiction and stage. These events do not begin like a conversation.
Three sentences to fix
"We struck up a contract with the vendor" sounds wrong. Say, "We negotiated a contract with the vendor." Use signed or entered into if that is the stage you mean.
We struck up a meeting with the vendor also sounds wrong. Say that you scheduled, opened, started, or held the meeting, depending on what happened.
They struck up a lawsuit also sounds wrong. In many settings, say, "They filed a lawsuit." Brought or started legal proceedings may fit other jurisdictions or stages.
"We struck up the vendor audit" sounds wrong. Say, "We opened the vendor audit after procurement flagged the invoice issue." You can also begin, launch, or conduct an audit, depending on its stage.
Try it yourself
Repair a meeting sentence
Practice scenarios
Practice using strike up in situations like:
- describing a contract being negotiated or signed with a vendor
- saying that a meeting, review, or audit was opened or held
- describing a lawsuit or formal complaint being filed
Useful practice phrases:
- "We negotiated a contract with..."
- "They filed a lawsuit against..."
- "We opened the audit after..."
Want to get better at distinctions like this?
Lyra Practice helps you learn the nuance of high-value workplace expressions, then practice using them in realistic situations.
See how Lyra Practice works →A contract begins through a formal procedure, whereas a conversation may start through a social opening.
Use "strike up" for that social kind of beginning.