do the needful
Take necessary action
Do the needful means to take the necessary action or handle what needs to be done.
The phrase is standard in Indian English but sounds quaint or bureaucratic to American and British ears: Please do the needful and revert back to me.
Common in business correspondence, especially in tech and customer service contexts where Indian English prevails.
- fulfillExecute to completion
- performExecute or present
- executeCarry out fully
- Indian EnglishRegional variety from subcontinent
- accomplishComplete successfully
do the right thing · regionalism · colonial legacy · formal tone · carry out · complete · follow up · request · idiomatic expression · instruct · undertake · British Raj · implement · direct · notify · assign · entrust · delegate
do the needfuldo nothing
Remain inactive deliberately
stand by · twiddle one's thumbs · sit on one's hands · stay put · drag one's feet
do the needfuldrop the ball
Fail at a critical moment
pass the buck · slack off · leave in the lurch · look the other way · turn a blind eye
do the needfulmake matters worse
Intensify an existing problem
spin one's wheels · miss the point · bark up the wrong tree · go through the motions · phone it in
done, undone, undoing, need, needs, needed, needing, needy, neediness