Verb + 来 (toward speaker) vs Verb + 去 (away from speaker)
Directional complements 来 vs 去 — toward vs away from the speaker
After many action verbs, 来 (lái) or 去 (qù) shows the direction of movement RELATIVE TO THE SPEAKER (or the story's point of view): 来 = toward here/the speaker, 去 = away from here, toward somewhere else. That's why the same verb splits into pairs: 进来 (come in, toward me) vs 进去 (go in, away from me); 回来 (come back, toward here) vs 回去 (go back, to another place); 上来/上去 (come up/go up), 下来/下去 (come down/go down), 出来/出去 (come out/go out). The deciding question: from the speaker's (or the story's) position, is the movement heading TOWARD here (→来), or AWAY from here (→去)? A classic beginner slip is picking 去 while describing someone approaching where you are, or vice versa — always check where the speaker is standing before choosing.
Examples
- 快进来，外面很冷。kuài jìn lái, wài miàn hěn lěng
Come in quickly, it's cold outside.
- 他明天回去看父母。tā míng tiān huí qù kàn fù mǔ
He's going back tomorrow to see his parents.
- 你先上去，我马上就上来。nǐ xiān shàng qù, wǒ mǎ shàng jiù shàng lái
You go up first, I'll come up right away.
Common mistake
✗ Wrong: 你快进去吧！
✓ Right: 你快进来吧！
Said by someone already standing inside, calling to a person outside: since the speaker is inside, someone entering is moving TOWARD the speaker, so 来 (进来) is correct — 去 (进去) would mean moving away from the speaker into somewhere else.
Practice this pattern
Fill in the missing character:
快进＿，外面很冷。
Come in quickly, it's cold outside.