In this workplace sense, "strike up" is a phrasal verb. The key question is which noun comes next.
"Strike up" pairs with conversations and the beginning of relationships. Natural targets include a conversation, chat, friendship, partnership, or working relationship. Rapport, acquaintance, collaboration, alliance, and correspondence can also work. Procedural targets do not normally fit. These include a contract, meeting, lawsuit, audit, strategy, budget, agenda, deadline, or protocol.
Quick check
Conversation or compliance protocol?
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Take the free assessment →Two natural groups of targets
The nouns fall into two groups. A conversation or chat names one interaction, while a friendship or working relationship names an ongoing bond. Acquaintance, collaboration, alliance, and correspondence fit that group too.
"Strike up a rapport" is correct and appears in real use. Still, formal business prose more often uses "build" or "establish rapport."
What does not normally pair with strike up
Procedural targets do not normally pair with strike up. A deal, contract, meeting, lawsuit, or audit needs another verb. So does a strategy, budget, agenda, deadline, or protocol.
"She struck up a conversation with the keynote speaker" and "they struck up a friendship over the following months" — a single-interaction target and an ongoing-bond target, both natural.
"The two firms struck up a collaboration after the joint proposal succeeded, and the working relationship has grown since" — two ongoing-bond nouns, both natural pairings.
"We struck up a contract with the vendor" and "they struck up the budget review" are both unnatural — a contract is negotiated, and a budget review is held or conducted, not struck up.
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Practice scenarios
Practice using strike up in situations like:
- choosing the right noun to follow strike up in a sentence about a new contact
- choosing the right noun for an ongoing bond, like a friendship or partnership
- catching a procedural target that does not normally follow strike up
Useful practice phrases:
- "I struck up a conversation with..."
- "They struck up a collaboration after..."
- "We struck up a rapport with... (or, more formally: we established rapport with...)"
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See how Lyra Practice works →A short, social noun after strike up will often sound natural.
A procedural target needs a different verb.