进来 (jìnlái) or 进去 (jìnqù)? How 来 (lái) and 去 (qù) Show Direction in Chinese

Should you say 进来 or 进去?
Should you say 拿过来 or 拿过去?

The answer depends on one simple question:

📍 Is the movement toward the reference point or away from it?

For beginners, the reference point is usually the speaker’s location, although in some situations it can be another place already established in the conversation.

Once you find the reference point, choosing 来 (lái) and 去 (qù) becomes much easier. 😊

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01 THE CORE DIFFERENCE

来 (lái) and 去 (qù) can be used after verbs to show the direction of movement.

来 (lái)

来 shows movement toward the reference point.

去 (qù)

去 shows movement away from the reference point.

🔑 Easy way to remember:

来 = toward here
去 = away from here

In many beginner-level examples, “here” is simply where the speaker is.

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02 PATTERN 1: VERB + 来 / 去

Some verbs can be followed directly by 来 or 去.

Common examples:

拿来 (ná lái)
bring something here

拿去 (ná qù)
take something there / away

带来 (dài lái)
bring something here

带去 (dài qù)
take something there

送来 (sòng lái)
bring / deliver something here

送去 (sòng qù)
send / deliver something there

Example 1

→ The chair moves toward the reference point, so we use 来.

Example 2

→ The things move away from the reference point, so we use 去.

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03 PATTERN 2: VERB + DIRECTIONAL ELEMENT + 来 / 去

Chinese often places another directional element before 来 or 去.

Common directional elements include:

上 (shàng) — up
下 (xià) — down
进 (jìn) — in
出 (chū) — out
回 (huí) — back
过 (guò) — over / across / from one place to another

The first directional element shows the path of movement.

来 / 去 then shows whether that movement is toward or away from the reference point.

For example:

走进来 (zǒu jìnlái)
walk in toward the reference point

跑出去 (pǎo chūqù)
run out and away from the reference point

拿过来 (ná guòlái)
bring something over here

送过去 (sòng guòqù)
send / take / deliver something over there

💡 Forms such as 进来、出去、回来、过去 are often called compound directional complements.

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04 COMMON PAIRS

💡 These English translations are only general guides.

Chinese does not always use 来 / 去 in exactly the same way that English uses come / go.

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05 进来 OR 进去?

Imagine that you are inside a room.

The other person enters the room and moves toward you.

So we use:

进 + 来 → 进来

Now imagine that you are standing outside the room.

The person enters the room but moves away from your current position.

So we use:

进 + 去 → 进去

🔑 The destination can be the same room. What changes is the reference point.

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06 下来 OR 下去?

Imagine that you are waiting downstairs.

→ The person moves toward you.

So we use 下来.

Now imagine that you and your friend are both upstairs.

→ You both move away from the current reference point upstairs.

So we use 下去.

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07 过来 OR 过去?

→ Toward the speaker: 来

→ Away from the speaker: 去

🔑 Compare:

拿过来
bring it over here

拿过去
take it over there

Notice that 过 here does not always literally mean “cross.”

It often shows movement from one place or side to another.

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08 出来 OR 出去?

Imagine that the teacher is inside the classroom, and you are waiting outside.

→ The teacher moves out and toward the speaker.

So we use 出来.

Now imagine that you are inside a room.

→ He moves out and away from the reference point.

So we use 出去.

💡 Do not translate every Chinese element word by word.

For example:

他突然跑出去了。
Tā tūrán pǎo chūqù le.

A natural English translation is simply:

He suddenly ran out.

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09 走过来 OR 走过去?

→ Movement is toward the reference point.

→ Movement is away from the reference point.

Compare:

走过来
walk over toward here

走过去
walk over there / walk away from here

The verb 走 stays the same.

The final 来 / 去 tells us how the movement relates to the reference point.

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10 DON’T TRANSLATE 来 AND 去 WORD BY WORD

来 and 去 are often similar to the English words come and go.

But Chinese and English do not always organize direction in exactly the same way.

Instead of translating word by word, ask yourself:

📍 Where is the reference point?

📍 Is the movement toward that point?

→ Use 来

📍 Is the movement away from that point?

→ Use 去

That is the key.

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11 A USEFUL BEGINNER TIP

When an object is involved, the 把 (bǎ) structure is often an easy and natural way to use directional complements.

For example:

For now, just remember the basic pattern:

把 + object + verb + directional complement

You do not need to master every possible word order at once.

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12 QUICK REVIEW

When you see a directional complement, use these three steps.

Step 1: Find the main action

走、跑、拿、送、搬……

What action is happening?

Step 2: Check the path

Is the movement:

up, down, in, out, back, or over/across?

Look for:

上、下、进、出、回、过

Step 3: Find the reference point

Is the movement toward that point or away from it?

🔑 Remember:

来 = toward the reference point

去 = away from the reference point

So:

进来 = move in toward the reference point
进去 = move in away from the reference point

下来 = move down toward the reference point
下去 = move down away from the reference point

过来 = move over toward the reference point
过去 = move over away from the reference point

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FINAL TIP

When choosing 来 or 去, do not start with the English translation.

First ask:

“Where is the reference point?”

Then ask:

“Is the movement toward it or away from it?”

Once you can answer those two questions, Chinese directional complements become much easier. 😊