想起来 / 看出来 / 想出来【xiǎng qǐlai / kàn chūlai / xiǎng chūlai】

directional complement, figurative, remember, recall, figure out, notice, recognise, write down, calm down, come round, qilai, chulai, xialai, xiaqu, guolai

Direction complements also carry meanings with no movement in them: 。 is "now I remember", and 。 "I can tell from the sound".

HSK 3

AI-generated

Structure

[verb] + 起来 / 出来

[verb] + 起 / 出 + [object] + 来

Description

Direction complements also go after verbs that involve no movement at all. This point covers the two that come first: 起来 for remembering and 出来 for noticing or coming up with. Each is easiest to learn with the verbs it goes with.

！

Now I remember!

，。

I recognised your voice – it's you.

起来: remembering

想起来 is "recall": something you knew comes back. 想不起来 is "can't remember".

。

I can't remember his phone number right now.

An object goes between 起 and 来. An object goes between 起 and 来.

。

I've remembered his name.

出来: noticing, coming up with

出来 brings something into view: 看出来 "notice, see that", 听出来 "tell by ear", 想出来 "come up with".

。

I could see he wasn't happy.

。

I've come up with a good idea.

想起来 brings back something you already knew. 想出来 produces something new.

The others

The rest each have a point of their own: 看起来 and 听起来 for an impression, 下来 for keeping and settling (记下来, 安静下来), 过来 and 过去 for coming round and passing out (醒过来, 晕过去), and 下去 for carrying on.

。

Please write this phone number down.

。

It was a long time before he came round.

Mistakes

× 我说不出来话 → 我说不出话来 (话 goes between 出 and 来)
× 我想出来了他的名字 → 我想起他的名字来了 (remembering takes 起来)

Examples

，。

I remember now – he's called Li Ming.

。

I've remembered his name.

。

I could see he wasn't happy.

。

On the phone I knew at once it was you.

。

I've come up with a good idea.

。

I suddenly remembered it's his birthday today.

。

I can't remember his phone number right now.

？

Have you remembered who I am?

？

Can you tell who painted this?

，。

He'd changed his hairstyle, and I barely recognised him.

。

I thought about this problem for ages and couldn't work it out.

。

She could tell I was a little upset.

References

Direction complement "-qilai"resources.allsetlearning.com
Advanced uses of direction complement "-qilai"resources.allsetlearning.com

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