Directional 来/去 with Verbs (进来, 上去) | Chinese (Mandarin) Grammar

Once you know the path verbs — 进, 出, 上, 下, 回, 过 — Chinese lets you clip 来 or 去 onto the end to say which way the motion runs relative to the speaker. 进来 is "come in," 进去 is "go in"; 上来 is "come up," 上去 is "go up." English maps this almost one-to-one with "come" and "go," but there's a catch worth internalizing now: the choice between 来 and 去 tracks where the speaker is standing, not where the subject is going. This page is a preview — the full compound system (拿回来, 跑出去, 走进房间去) lives in the Complements group — but the deictic logic you learn here carries all the way through.

The deictic logic: 来 (toward me) versus 去 (away from me)

Attach 来 when the movement heads toward the spot where the speaker is; attach 去 when it heads away. That's the entire rule. Each path verb pairs cleanly with both, and the 来/去 is toneless — it rides lightly on the path verb.

Path verb	来 (toward speaker)	去 (away from speaker)
进 (jìn) in	进来 (jìnlai) come in	进去 (jìnqu) go in
出 (chū) out	出来 (chūlai) come out	出去 (chūqu) go out
上 (shàng) up	上来 (shànglai) come up	上去 (shàngqu) go up
下 (xià) down	下来 (xiàlai) come down	下去 (xiàqu) go down
回 (huí) back	回来 (huílai) come back	回去 (huíqu) go back
过 (guò) over	过来 (guòlai) come over	过去 (guòqu) go over

快进来，外面太冷了！

kuài jìnlai, wàimiàn tài lěng le!

Come in quick — it's freezing outside! (informal) — speaker is inside, so movement toward them = 进来.

你出去吧，我想一个人待一会儿。

nǐ chūqu ba, wǒ xiǎng yí ge rén dāi yíhuìr

Go on out — I want to be by myself for a bit. (informal) — moving away from the speaker = 出去.

妈，我回来了！

mā, wǒ huílai le!

Mom, I'm home! (informal) — arriving at home base, where Mom (the anchor) is = 回来.

我明天就回去。

wǒ míngtiān jiù huíqu

I'll head back tomorrow. (neutral) — going back, away from here = 回去.

Where the speaker stands: 上来 versus 上去

The subtlety English speakers miss is that the anchor is the speaker's current position, not the subject's goal or the listener's location. If you're at the top of the stairs, someone climbing toward you is 上来. If you're at the bottom and you climb up, that's 上去 — even though English would say "I'll come up" out of politeness toward the person up top.

上来吧，风景很美！

shànglai ba, fēngjǐng hěn měi!

Come on up — the view's beautiful! (informal) — speaker is at the top, so up-toward-them = 上来.

你在楼上等着，我马上上去。

nǐ zài lóushàng děngzhe, wǒ mǎshàng shàngqu

Wait upstairs — I'll be up in a second. (informal) — speaker is downstairs; moving up and away from their own spot = 上去, even though English says 'come up'.

他从楼上跑下来了。

tā cóng lóushàng pǎo xiàlai le

He came running down from upstairs. (neutral) — toward the speaker below = 下来; note 跑 (manner) + 下来.

请过来一下。

qǐng guòlai yíxià

Come over here a sec. (neutral) — toward the speaker = 过来.

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One question settles every case: "Is the thing moving toward the spot where I am right now?" Yes → 来. No, it's moving away → 去. The mover can be you, someone else, or even an object being carried — what counts is your vantage point, not theirs.

A quick word on objects and places

When there's a place involved, it slots between the path verb and 来/去: 回国去 (go back to one's country), 进屋来 (come into the room). When there's a thing being moved, it can sit before or after the compound: 拿一本书进来 or 拿进来一本书 (bring a book in). This is exactly where "simple" directional verbs grow into the fuller compound directional complement — verbs like 拿回来, 跑出去, 走进房间去. We hold that treatment for the Complements group; for now, just anchor the 来/去 choice.

把书拿过来。

bǎ shū ná guòlai

Bring the book over here. (informal) — the object rides in a 把 phrase, 来 marks 'toward me'.

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This page is only the "simple" directional layer. Once a manner verb, an object, or a place joins in, 来/去 grow into the full compound complement — 跑出去 (run out), 拿回来 (bring back), 走进房间去 (walk into the room). The deixis you learned here never changes; only the number of moving parts does.

Common Mistakes

1. Defaulting to 去 regardless of viewpoint. If you're inside calling someone in, it's 进来, not 进去.

❌ 快进去！（你在屋里叫别人）

Wrong from inside — you want them to move toward you.

✅ 快进来！

kuài jìnlai!

Come in quick! — toward the speaker inside = 来.

2. Using 来 for movement away from you. Heading back home from here is 回去.

❌ 我该回来了。（意思是离开这里回家）

Wrong — leaving here to go home is away from the current spot.

✅ 我该回去了。

wǒ gāi huíqu le

I should head back now. — away from here = 去.

3. Copying English 'come up' when you're below. From downstairs, joining someone upstairs is 上去.

❌ 我马上上来。（你在楼下）

Wrong from downstairs — you're moving up and away from your own position.

✅ 我马上上去。

wǒ mǎshàng shàngqu

I'll be up in a second. — up-and-away = 去.

4. Putting the place after 来/去. A place object goes before 来/去, not after.

❌ 回去老家

Incorrect — the place can't follow 去.

✅ 回老家去

huí lǎojiā qù

go back to one's hometown — place sits between 回 and 去 (or just 回老家).

Key Takeaways

来 = motion toward where the speaker is; 去 = motion away from the speaker. The anchor is your position, not the subject's or listener's.
The six path verbs each pair with both: 进来/进去, 出来/出去, 上来/上去, 下来/下去, 回来/回去, 过来/过去.
上来 vs 上去 is the classic trap: from below, going up is 上去 even when English says "come up."
A place object sits between the verb and 来/去 (回老家去). Objects being carried can precede or follow the compound.
This is the entryway to the compound directional complements — same deixis, more moving parts.

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