Level 3 · Intermediate
Direction complements: Verb + 来/去
Verb + 来 / 去 · Traditional: Verb + 來 / 去
来 and 去 attach to verbs to show direction relative to the SPEAKER: 进来 "come in (toward me)", 出去 "go out (away from me)", 回来 "come back". Pick 来 if the movement heads toward you, 去 if it heads away.
When there's a destination, the place squeezes in BEFORE 来/去: 他回北京去了 "he went back to Beijing" — never 回去北京.
Examples
快进来吧，外面很冷。
快進來吧，外面很冷。
kuài jìn lái ba wài miàn hěn lěng
Come in quickly — it's cold outside.
他出去买东西了。
他出去買東西了。
tā chū qù mǎi dōng xi le
He went out to buy some things.
妈妈还没回来。
媽媽還沒回來。
mā ma hái méi huí lai
Mom hasn't come back yet.
他回北京去了。
tā huí běi jīng qù le
He went back to Beijing.
Common mistakes
✗ 他回去北京了。
✓ 他回北京去了。
The place goes before 来/去, not after it.
Related grammar points
See it in a story
Read this pattern in context: Xiao Bai's Night (Part 1) — free graded stories with tap-to-reveal pinyin and translations.
