7 Ways of Saying 'Join' in Business English

Welcome to Wisdom Wednesday.

In today’s newsletter, we will discuss several ways we can say ‘join’ in Business English.

‘Join’ is still good in many circumstances. For example, an employee may join the marketing team or even join a company. However, there are several other ways to say ‘join’.

1. Subscribe

While you may have ‘joined’ this email newsletter list a more common word to use for newsletters is ‘subscribe’. We use ‘subscribe’ to receive something regularly, often for a fee. For example, we subscribe to a newsletter, magazine or streaming service.

“I subscribed to Netflix to watch the latest series.”

2. Sign Up

We can also ‘sign up for a company newsletter’ or ‘sign up for a gym membership’. ‘Sign up’ can be quite informal to neutral and expresses the basic act of joining or arranging to take part in an activity.

“I am going to sign up for the company five-a-side football competition.”

3. Enrol (British English) Enroll (American English)

‘Enrol’ is a more formal version of ‘sign up’. You may enrol your child in a new school or summer camp.

“I am going to enrol in the MBA program at Cambridge University.”

4. Register

We can also use register for when a child joins a new school. Register is formal and is a broad term encompassing the act of officially recording your name and often details onto an official list. For example, when people move to Italy, they have to register with the police within a certain period. We can also register a car with the authorities or register for a conference.

“I want to register my son for a new school in September.”

Register can also be used in online contexts when you record your details on a company’s website or to create an online account.

“Register here to receive 10% discounts and early offers.”

5. Enlist

Enlist is usually used for military contexts. While you can join the army, enlist is more formal and has a stronger sense of duty.

“She decided to enlist in the army to serve her country and learn valuable skills.”

6. Sign On

Sign on means to sign a document saying that you will work for someone and is often used with ‘with’.

“She signed on with the local temp agency.”

However, in British English, there is another completely different meaning for ‘sign on’.

Sign on also means to sign a form at a government office to say that you do not have work, you are actively looking for work and that you wish and are eligible to receive unemployment benefits (money paid by the government).

If you lose your job you can sign on at the local Job Centre.

7. Become a Member

Become a member is a formal way to express joining a club and taking advantage of the associated benefits.

“He became a member of the local golf club.”

Conclusion

We can see that there are several different ways of saying more or less the same thing and there is overlap between some of these where more than one option is possible. When choosing the most appropriate word, consider the formality of the situation and the specific action you are taking.

Finally, do not obsess about choosing the right word - you will be understood. If you do not choose the best word the person you are speaking to may subtly correct you.

Words of the Day - Temp and Temping Agency

Temp - noun - a person employed to work for a short period, especially in an office and often while another person is absent or for extra cover during busy periods.

“I worked as a temp before the company offered me a full-time position”

Temping Agency (UK English) Temp Agency (US English) - noun - an organisation dedicated to finding short-term or temporary workers for companies or short-term or temporary jobs for people interested in these positions. It is an employment agency for temporary work.

“Temping agencies are very busy in the period leading up to Christmas.”

Do you have any Business English questions?

Please email me and I will do my best to answer them in future newsletters.

Until Friday - have a great day!

Iain.

www.communicateenglish.com

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