Directional complements — which way the action goes
Attach 来 (toward the speaker) or 去 (away) to a verb, optionally with a direction word: 他跑出来了 — he ran out (toward me). Objects usually sit inside the complement: 拿出一本书来.
Structure
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Verb + 来 / 去
进来 (come in), 进去 (go in) — relative to the speaker.
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Verb + 上/下/进/出/回/过/起 + 来/去
跑出来, 走进去, 拿回来.
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Verb + direction + Object + 来/去
拿出一本书来 — the object splits the complement.
How it works
Everything hinges on where the speaker is standing. 来 means the movement comes toward the speaker, 去 that it goes away. Standing inside a room you say 请进来 (come in); standing outside it, 你进去吧 (go in).
Seven direction words combine with that pair: 上 (up), 下 (down), 进 (in), 出 (out), 回 (back), 过 (across/over), 起 (up from a surface — 起 pairs only with 来). That gives 上来/上去, 出来/出去, 回来/回去 and so on.
Where the object goes is the tricky part. Most often it splits the complement: 他拿出一本书来。 With a place, the place must go inside: 他走进房间来。 — never 走进来房间.
Many of these have gone figurative and are extremely common: 想起来 (recall), 说下去 (carry on speaking), 看起来 (it seems), 听起来 (it sounds), 写下来 (write down), 活下去 (survive). Learn these as vocabulary rather than deriving them.
The potential form works here too: 出得来 / 出不来 (able / unable to get out), 想不起来 (can't recall).
Examples
Quick drill — 5 questions
Five fill-in-the-gap questions built from the example sentences above. No sign-up, no score kept — just a check that the pattern has actually landed.
Choose the word that belongs in the gap:
Common mistakes
| ✗ Wrong | ✓ Right | Why |
|---|---|---|
| 他走进来房间。 | 他走进房间来。 | A place must sit inside the complement, before 来/去. |
| （standing outside）请进来。 | 你进去吧。 | 来 and 去 are chosen from where the speaker is, not from the mover's point of view. |
| 我想起他的名字了。 | 我想起他的名字来了。 | 想起来 is a fixed unit; with an object it splits, but 来 does not disappear. |
Directional complements — 上来, 下去, 出来 — frequently asked questions
What is the difference between 来 and 去 in directional complements?
来 means the movement is toward the speaker, 去 that it is away from them. Inside a room you say 请进来 (come in); outside it you say 你进去吧 (go in). The choice depends on where the speaker stands, not on the mover.
Where does the object go with a directional complement?
Usually inside the complement: 他拿出一本书来 (he took out a book). With a place it must go inside: 他走进房间来 (he walked into the room) — 走进来房间 is wrong.
What does 起来 mean when it isn't literal?
Several things. 想起来 is to recall; 看起来 is "it looks like"; 听起来 is "it sounds like"; 说起来 is "speaking of". These figurative uses are extremely common and are best learned as vocabulary.
How do you say "can't get out" in Chinese?
出不来 — the potential form, made by putting 不 between the verb and the complement. The positive is 出得来. The same pattern gives 想不起来 (can't recall) and 看不出来 (can't tell).
Next, learn
Put it to work
Drill the vocabulary for this level on the HSK 3 word list, rebuild scrambled sentences in the Sentence Builder, read graded stories that use this pattern in the story library, or follow a step-by-step route through the whole site in Guided Learning Paths.