Kilo Lingo
Mandarin grammar Part of Chapter 20

CEFR B1-B2

4 min read

Test yourself (24 questions)

Figurative 起来, 下去 and 出来 in Mandarin

By Michael McGettrick and Wee Khang LinUpdated 12 October 2026

(qǐlái), (xiàqù) and (chūlái) start as up, down and out, as on compound directional complements. After many verbs they leave the ground: is something starting, is something carrying on, and is something coming out where you can see it.

Quick check

Three quick questions on what you have just read. The full practice is further down.

Pick the right one

0/3

Pick the complement the English asks for.

  1. 孩子哭了。 (The child started crying.)

    hái zi kū ___ liǎo 。 (The child started crying.)

  2. 你说，我在听。 (Go on, I'm listening.)

    nǐ shuō ___， wǒ zài tīng 。 (Go on, I'm listening.)

  3. 我看他不高兴。 (I could tell he wasn't happy.)

    wǒ kàn ___ tā bù gāo xìng 。 (I could tell he wasn't happy.)

The whole system on one screen

The colours stay the same all page long:

起来 qǐlái下去 xiàqù出来 chūláiWhat do the colours mean?
HanziPinyinEnglish
。Tā xiào qǐlái le.He started laughing
。Kàn qǐlái hěn guì.It looks expensive
。Nǐ shuō xiàqù.Go on (keep talking)
。Wǒ kàn chūlái le.I can tell
。Tā xiǎng chūlái yí ge bànfǎ.He came up with a plan
！Wǒ xiǎng qǐlái le!It's come back to me!

Up is where things spring into life, downstream is carrying on, and out is into view. Hold those three pictures and the uses follow.

起来 (qǐlái): it starts

起来 qǐláiWhat do the colours mean?

(qǐlái) marks the moment an action or a state begins. English says start, burst out, get:

HanziPinyinEnglish
。Tā xiào qǐlái le.He started laughing
。Háizi kū qǐlái le.The child burst into tears
。Tiān lěng qǐlái le.It's getting cold
。Wàimian xià qǐ yǔ lái le.It's started raining
。Tāmen chàng qǐ gē lái le.They started singing

With an object, the object goes between (qǐ) and (lái), as in the last two rows: , never . In casual speech the (lái) often drops: (xià qǐ yǔ le). A change that has begun takes (le) at the end.

起来 (qǐlái): how it seems when you try it

起来 qǐláiWhat do the colours mean?

After a verb of the senses or of doing, (qǐlái) means "when you do it", and a verdict follows:

HanziPinyinEnglish
。Zhè jiàn yīfu kàn qǐlái hěn guì.This top looks expensive
。Tīng qǐlái búcuò.Sounds good
。Zhège cài chī qǐlái yǒudiǎn là.This dish is a bit spicy
，。Shuō qǐlái róngyì, zuò qǐlái nán.Easier said than done

The thing being judged comes first: in (zhège cài chī qǐlái yǒudiǎn là), the dish is spicy, not the person eating it.

下去 (xiàqù): carry on

起来 qǐlái下去 xiàqùWhat do the colours mean?

(xiàqù) keeps going something that is already going:

HanziPinyinEnglish
。Nǐ shuō xiàqù.Go on (keep talking)
。Wǒmen yào jiānchí xiàqù.We have to keep going
。Zhèyàng xiàqù bù xíng.We can't go on like this
。Wǒ tīng bu xiàqù le.I can't listen to any more of this

(qǐlái) and (xiàqù) sit at two ends of the same action:

  • 。 - He started singing.
  • 。 - He carried on singing.

The can't-form in the last row of the table, (tīng bu xiàqù), is a potential complement.

出来 (chūlái): you can tell, you came up with it

出来 chūláiWhat do the colours mean?

(chūlái) brings something hidden out where you can see it. With a verb of the senses it means making something out; with a verb of making or thinking, producing it:

HanziPinyinEnglish
。Wǒ kàn chūlái tā bù gāoxìng.I could tell he wasn't happy
？Nǐ tīng chūlái shì shéi le ma?Could you tell who it was?
。Tā xiǎng chūlái yí ge bànfǎ.He came up with a plan
。Nǐ shuō chūlái ba.Out with it

What comes out comes towards you, the one who notices, so this is always (chūlái), never (chūqù). Can or can't tell is (kàn de chūlái) and (kàn bu chūlái).

想起来 (xiǎng qǐlái) or 想出来 (xiǎng chūlái)?

起来 qǐlái出来 chūláiWhat do the colours mean?

Both are thinking, and English often says "think of" for both. (qǐlái) brings back something you knew; (chūlái) brings out something new:

HanziPinyinEnglish
！Wǒ xiǎng qǐlái le!It's come back to me!
。Wǒ xiǎng bu qǐlái tā de míngzi.I can't remember his name
！Wǒ xiǎng chūlái le!I've worked it out!
。Wǒ xiǎng bu chūlái hǎo bànfǎ.I can't think of a good plan

A name, a face or a date you once knew is (xiǎng qǐlái). A plan, an answer or an idea that did not exist before is (xiǎng chūlái).

Mistakes English speakers make

WrongRightWhy
。。the object goes between (qǐ) and (lái)
。。for "go on": carrying on is (xiàqù)
。。making something out is (chūlái)
。。for "I remember his name now": remembering is (xiǎng qǐlái); sounds as if you worked it out

What to do next

  1. Do the drill below.
  2. Comment on three things around you with (kàn qǐlái) or (tīng qǐlái).
  3. Then read potential complements for (xiǎng bu qǐlái) and (kàn bu chūlái).

Practise: test yourself

Sort into groups

0/6

What does the complement add?

Tap a word, then the group it belongs in.

Pick the right one

0/5

Pick the complement the English asks for.

  1. 孩子哭了。 (The child started crying.)

    hái zi kū ___ liǎo 。 (The child started crying.)

  2. 你说，我在听。 (Go on, I'm listening.)

    nǐ shuō ___， wǒ zài tīng 。 (Go on, I'm listening.)

  3. 我看他不高兴。 (I could tell he wasn't happy.)

    wǒ kàn ___ tā bù gāo xìng 。 (I could tell he wasn't happy.)

  4. 这个菜看很好吃。 (This dish looks delicious.)

    zhè ge cài kàn ___ hěn hǎo chī 。 (This dish looks delicious.)

  5. 我听了，是你！ (I could tell from your voice: it's you!)

    wǒ tīng ___ liǎo ， shì nǐ ！ (I could tell from your voice: it's you!)

Spot the mistake

0/3

Each sentence has one mistake. Tap it.

  1. wài miàn xià yǔ qǐ lái le 。

  2. nǐ bié tíng ， shuō qǐ lái ba ， wǒ zài tīng 。

  3. wǒ yí kàn jiù kàn chū qù tā bù gāo xìng 。

Complete the story

0/5

Choose the complement for each gap.

The name

他的名字我一下子想不了。我们说着说着，他突然笑了。我说：你别笑，说！他说：你看我是谁了吗？我终于想了：是我的老同学！

Gap 1 of 5

Matching

0/5

Match each phrase to its English.

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Frequently asked questions

What does (qǐlái) mean after a verb when nothing goes up?
Either that something starts, as in (tā xiào qǐlái le), he started laughing, and (tiān lěng qǐlái le), it's getting cold; or how something seems when you try it: (kàn qǐlái hěn guì), it looks expensive; (tīng qǐlái búcuò), sounds good.
What does (xiàqù) mean figuratively?
Carrying on with something already going: (nǐ shuō xiàqù), go on, keep talking; (wǒmen yào jiānchí xiàqù), we have to keep going; (zhèyàng xiàqù bù xíng), we can't go on like this.
What is the difference between (xiǎng qǐlái) and (xiǎng chūlái)?
(xiǎng qǐlái) is remembering something you already knew: (wǒ xiǎng qǐlái le), it's come back to me. (xiǎng chūlái) is coming up with something new: (tā xiǎng chūlái yí ge bànfǎ), he came up with a plan.
What does (kàn chūlái) mean?
To tell, or spot, by looking: (wǒ kàn chūlái tā bù gāoxìng), I could tell he wasn't happy. (kàn de chūlái) is can tell and (kàn bu chūlái) can't tell. (kàn qǐlái) is different: it looks, it seems.
Where does the object go with ?
When means start, an object goes between (qǐ) and (lái): (xià qǐ yǔ lái le), it's started raining; (tāmen chàng qǐ gē lái), they started singing. is wrong.