Learn Hardcore Chinese: xiàbān hòu wǒ gěi tā dǎ diànhuà.

at the start to set the scene (more topical): 下班后我…
after the subject (very common): 我下班后… Don’t put the time at the very end (e.g., 我给她打电话下班后)—that’s not idiomatic.

Do I need 给 here? Can I say 我打电话她?

You need 给 (or use the alternative order below). Chinese marks the recipient of a call with 给:

给她打电话
or 打电话给她 Saying 我打电话她 is ungrammatical.

What’s the difference between 给她打电话 and 打电话给她?

Meaning is the same. Style varies by region:

Mainland preference: 给她打电话
Taiwan/Singapore: 打电话给她 Both are widely understood. Avoid the incorrect mix-up 打给她电话.

What is 给 doing here? Isn’t 给 “to give”?

Here 给 works like a preposition/coverb meaning “to/for,” marking the recipient (indirect object): 给她 = “to her.” It doesn’t mean “to give” in this sentence.

Is 打电话 a separable verb? What can go inside it?

Yes, 打电话 is a separable verb (离合词). You can insert aspect, numbers, and softeners:

Aspect: 给她打了电话, 给她打过电话
Number/measure: 给她打个电话, 给她打了三个电话
Softener: 给她打一下电话 (means “give a quick/try call”) You cannot rearrange it as 打电话她给 or 给她电话打.

How do I show it already happened?

Use 了 with the verb:

下班后我给她打了电话。 You’ll also hear: 下班后我打了电话给她 (more common outside Mainland). Don’t put 了 after 电话.

How do I make it clearly future?

Context often makes it future, but you can add:

会: 下班后我会给她打电话。
要 (plan/intention): 下班后我要给她打电话。
就 (immediately then): 下班后我就给她打电话。
再 (not now, later/after that): 下班后我再给她打电话。

下班后 vs 下班以后 vs 下班之后—any difference?

All can mean “after getting off work,” and they’re interchangeable here:

下班后: concise, neutral.
下班以后: common in speech; can also mean “from that time onward” in other contexts.
下班之后: a bit more formal/literary. In this sentence, pick any.

Whose “after work” is it? Mine or hers?

By default, it refers to the sentence subject. In 下班后我给她打电话, it most naturally means “after I (the speaker) get off work.” If you mean after she gets off:

她下班后，我给她打电话。
Or more clearly: 等她下班以后，我再给她打电话。

Can I say 跟她打电话?

For placing a call, use 给她打电话 or 打电话给她. 跟她打电话 isn’t idiomatic for “call her.” Use 跟她通电话 for “be on the phone with her” (emphasizes the two-way conversation), e.g., 我跟她通了十分钟电话。

How do I count phone calls? 个 or 通?

Both occur, with a nuance:

个 (colloquial, very common): 给她打了一个电话/几个电话
通 (the standard measure for calls): 给她打了两通电话 Either is fine; 通 feels a bit more precise/formal.

How can I soften it like “I’ll give her a quick call”?

Use a light measure or softening:

给她打个电话
给她打一下电话 (brief/try)
You can combine: 给她打个电话吧 (suggestion/offer).

How do I negate it correctly? 不 vs 没?

General/future/habitual refusal: 下班后我不给她打电话。 (“I don’t/won’t call her after work.”)
Past non-occurrence: 下班后我没给她打电话。 (“I didn’t call her after work.”)

Any tone-sandhi I should watch?

Yes. 我 (wǒ, 3rd) + 给 (gěi, 3rd) triggers 3–3 sandhi: pronounce it as 2–3, roughly “wó gěi.” Other thirds (like 打 dǎ) before fourth tones are pronounced with the “half-third” in fluent speech.

Can I omit the subject 我?

If context makes the subject obvious, Chinese often drops it. But note the meaning shift:

下班后给她打电话。 could be read as an instruction (“Call her after work”) or as a subjectless diary-like note. For a neutral statement, include 我.

Is 叫她 the same as “call her”?

No. 叫她 means “call out to her”/“ask her to do something,” not “call her on the phone.” Use 给她打电话 for phone calls.

Can I use 把 with this?

You may see forms like 把电话打给她 or 把电话打过去 in colloquial speech, but they’re less beginner-friendly. Stick with 给她打电话 / 打电话给她 until you’re comfortable with 把-constructions.

Any quick alternatives that sound natural?

下班后我给她来个电话。 (colloquial: “I’ll give her a call.”)
With “then”: 下班后我就给她打电话。
With “later/after that”: 下班后我再给她打电话。

Where does 过 go if I mean “I’ve called her (before)”?

Use 过 after the verb: 我给她打过电话 (“I have called her before”). With time added: 下班后我给她打过电话 describes a past experience of calling after work (not a specific one-time event).