Meaning trap
sort out
organise
To arrange things in order or put them in the right place so they are tidy or easy to find.
Don't mix these meanings
Same phrase, different job.
To arrange things in order or put them in the right place so they are tidy or easy to find.
Another meaning of 'sort out' is 'solve a problem'; compare the examples to keep the meanings separate.
Hear it in context
Notice where the phrase sounds natural.
I need to sort out my desk because it's covered in papers.
If I have a lot of documents, I usually sort them out into different folders so I can find them easily later.
Fix the pattern
One small grammar move makes it sound right.
Not: Let me sort out it.
Say: Let me sort it out.
With a pronoun, the object goes in the middle: 'sort it out', never 'sort out it'.
Which sounds natural?
Tap the one a native speaker would say.
'Sort out' naturally covers both tidying and fixing in one phrase, and sounds far less stiff than 'resolve and organise'.
Build natural chunks
Words that usually travel with it.
sort out + mess/problem
- a problem
- the mess
- the details
- your life
Don't confuse it
Related
Other meanings and phrases to compare.
- sort out (solve a problem) — Another meaning of 'sort out' is 'solve a problem'; compare the examples to keep the meanings separate.