Learn English – check something out or check out something

phrasal-verbs

I think that term "check this out" is more natural than "check out this", while in contrast I think "check out this source code" is more natural than "check this source code out";

Would you please say is my feeling/conclusion right and is there a general rule for the verb "check out" or even some verbs like that?

Best Answer

I remember the general rule as described in the book 'Swan's Practical English'. It says...

Adverb particles can go between the verb and the subject noun.

For instance,

Switch off the light over Switch the light off

Having this said,

check out the source code - is fine and looks a bit better

Now, why check the source code out does not sound okay?

Well, I had asked this question here (though not able to trace) and the crux I got from the answers by natives is splitting the adverbial particle from verb does not sound natural as the length of the sentence (clause) between them increases.

This is the reason, for longer sentences, it's better to keep check out as check out

Check out [longer phrase] - looks natural
Check [shorter phrase] out - looks natural

Though some may call it grammatical, but to others (including me!) it does not sound natural.

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