keep out
SeparableThe object can go before or after the particle — but a pronoun MUST go in the middle: “clean it up”, never “clean up it”.
How to say it
Stress the particle, not the verb: keep OUT. Saying “KEEP out” is the clearest learner tell — the verb stays light and the particle carries the beat.
Link across the gap. The final /p/ of “keep” moves onto the particle and starts its syllable: “keep out” is said “kee-pout”. Pausing between the words is what makes phrasal verbs sound recited rather than spoken.
What it means
To stay outside, or to prevent something from entering.
- “The sign said KEEP OUT.”
- “These curtains keep out most of the light.”
Similar: exclude, bar