起 (qǐ) means to rise, get up, or begin. Standalone it appears in 起床 (get out of bed), 起飞 (take off). As a directional complement it indicates upward movement: 站起来 (stand up), 拿起 (pick up), 爬起来 (get up/climb up). As part of 从...起 it marks the start of a period (从今天起, starting today). 起来 (qǐ lái) as a compound complement is extremely versatile, adding inchoative or upward meaning to many verbs.