Phrasal Verb Fun

pick up on
My English teacher is always picking up on my mistakes. I hate her.
By extension from
pick up
, pick up on means to detect.
As Detective Jones was talking to Milly Molly, the club owner, he picked
up on the fact that something was not right. She knew more than she was
saying.
Three-word verb
No problem.
play
(play, played, played)
Play is what children do when they are not at school. They play in the
house, in the street, in the park. They play everywhere. And it is fun. This
is always contrasted to
work
, which is serious.
Musicians also play their instruments.
play at
She went to the United States to learn English but after a year she didn't
even know the plural of 'woman'. She was only playing at learning the
language..
Play is always contrasted to work, which is serious. So to play at
something, is to do it but not seriously. It is a contemptuous expression.
Inseparable two-word verb
No problem.