When should I use "Figure out the rest" vs "figure the rest out"? Does it matter?

Question

I'm writing something where a character tells someone else vaguely something that that she did in the past and then tacks on "I'll let you figure out the rest" at the end. Then some of the notes of the person proofreading my work suggested I have her say "I'll let you figure the rest out" instead. What he suggested seems totally fine... but what I initially put seemed just as equally viable to me. So I asked myself if it matters and if it does then which should I use here?

Answer 1

The short answer is that it doesn't matter. To expand on that, "figure out" is generally used as what the Cambridge Dictionary calls a "phrasal verb," meaning that it's most commonly written as a phrase with the two words together, but it is generally acceptable to insert a noun between "figure" and "out" as your proofreader suggested.

If you're concerned about the grammar of it, then the safest route might be to stick with your original version, but since both ways are correct, and it's being used in a piece of fiction where you get to bend the rules of grammar a bit to suit the story you're telling, you can choose either version.

Answer 2

Hi, it sounds like this is a case where, because you're writing (presumably fictionalized) dialogue, the relevant question isn't so much which version of this line is more grammatically correct, but which version of this line better reflects the voice of the character you've got delivering it. And in that regard, neither version seems different enough to alter a reader's perception of who this character is or how this character talks.

Good luck with the story!

Shane