Learn Spanish (Latin America): Lo acaban de expulsar por subrayar los libros. - They just banned him for underlining the books.

In English, we say "for underlining", using an "-ing" word. But in Spanish, when a preposition like por is followed directly by a verb to show a cause or reason, that verb must always be in the infinitive form. So, "for underlining" translates directly to por subrayar.

How does acaban de translate to "they just"?

The formula acabar de + infinitive is a very common phrase that means "to have just done something." Even though acaban is conjugated in the present tense, the phrase refers to an action in the very recent past. Acaban de expulsar means "they just expelled" or "they have just banned."

Could the pronoun lo go anywhere else in this sentence?

Yes! Because acaban de expulsar works together as a single verb phrase ending in an infinitive, you have two choices for the direct object pronoun lo. You can place it before the conjugated verb (Lo acaban de expulsar...) or attach it directly to the end of the infinitive (Acaban de expulsarlo...). Both are perfectly correct and mean the exact same thing.

I thought expulsar meant "to expel." Does it also mean "to ban"?

Literally, expulsar means "to expel," "to eject," or "to kick out." Depending on the context—like a library, a store, or an online forum—kicking someone out is the equivalent of banning them. The translation "banned" often sounds more natural in everyday English for these situations.