Native speakers use a lot of phrasal verbs so if you want to sound more natural, try to use phrasal verbs.
Oh no! I can hear my students say! Most of my students hate phrasal verbs because there are so many and it's so hard to learn them. I had one student who came to me and said, 'Christine, I found a great website with a lot of phrasal verbs! Look at all the phrasal verbs I wrote down!' He was SO excited and showed me his book filled with pages and pages of these words.
It's impossible to learn phrasal verbs by just memorising them. There are 2 or 3 parts to phrasal verbs: a verb + a preposition or adverb.
Here are some of my tips on how to learn phrasal verbs.
Learn 3 - 5 phrasal verbs each time. It's impossible to learn a long list of words. Spend a week or two weeks to learn a few each time. If you learn slowly, use 3 weeks! It's not a problem!
Learn by using them. Use it in your writing. When you are thinking about a subject, can you use them in your topic? When you are watching a TV programme or film, can you use the phrasal verbs to describe a scene from the programme. Think in English!
Learn by topic. In what context can you use your phrasal verbs? money, relationships, travel, etc. Some books give you a list of phrasal verbs with the same preposition e.g. break up, hook up, take up, shake up. It is very hard to learn them this way. Use a topic to help you remember.
Try this website from the British Council. There are short animations with phrasal verbs for different contexts.
Tell me what you think about phrasal verbs. Love them or hate them? Whatever your opinion, they are used a lot by native speakers and is important to study them to increase your vocabulary.