Separable or Inseparable Verbs

The verbs with the following prefixes can be either separable or inseparable:

durch-, hinter-, über-, um-, unter-

1.    Some verbs with these prefixes are always separable.

Example:

umschauen – er schaut sich um

2.    Some other verbs with these prefixes are never separable.

Example:

umarmen – sie umarmt ihn

3.    There are however some verbs with can be either separable or inseparable with these prefixes. In this case, the separable verb and the inseparable verb have two different meanings.

Example:

umfahren – Er fährt das Schild um. – Er umfährt das Schild.