Understand the rule

A phrasal verb combines a verb with a particle, and its meaning may not be predictable from the parts. Give up can mean stop trying; look after means care for; carry out means perform; put off means postpone; find out means discover. Some are separable: turn off the light / turn the light off. With an object pronoun, a separable verb normally requires it between verb and particle: turn it off. Others remain together: look after her, not look her after.

Follow a method

Learn a short contextual sentence rather than an isolated translation. Check whether the verb takes an object and whether it is separable. Choose a form matching the tense of the sentence. When writing formally, consider whether a single-word equivalent is clearer.

Worked example

Practise and explain your answer