Locative verbs

Chinese locative verbs are verbs of motion, that indicate both movement and direction. They can be intransitive or transitive, as to say that they are followed by a locative object that has a direct relationship with the verb and, together with it, forms a verbal predicative group. Contrary to English, there are no prepositions between the verb and the object.

Following, a list of the main locative verbs.

来 (lái) – to come, to arrive
客人来了！
kèrén lái le
[guest to-arrive MOD]
The guests have arrived!

我来这里的时候，他已经走了。
wǒ lái zhèlǐ de shíhòu, tā yǐjīng zǒu le
[I to-come here ST time, he already to-go MOD]
When I came here, he was already gone.

去 (qù) – to go to
我要去超市。
wǒ yào qù chāoshì
[I have-to to-go-to supermarket]
I have to go to the supermarket.

上 (shàng) – to get on, according to its position in the sentence, it can also mean “up” or “last”
上车吧！
shàng chē ba
[to-get-on car MOD]
Get on the car!

下 (xià) – to get off, according to its position in the sentence, it can also mean “down” or “next”
我刚才下公车了。
wǒ gāngcái xià gong che le
[I just-now to-get-off bus MOD]
I just got off the bus.

进 (jìn) – to enter
我进了图书馆就见到他了。
wǒ jìn le túshū guǎn jiù jiàn dào tā le
[I to-enter ASP library then to-see him MOD]
I saw him just after entering the library.

出 (chū) – to go out
老师刚才出教室了。
lǎoshī gāngcái chū jiàoshì le
[teacher just-now to-go-out classroom MOD]
The teacher just went out of the classroom.

在 (zài) – to be at, in or on
我现在不在大学。
wǒ xiànzài bùzài dàxué
[I now not to-be-at university]
I’m not at the university now.

回 (huí) – to go back
圣诞的时候，我回家看父母。
shèngdàn de shíhòu, wǒ huí jiā kàn fùmǔ
[Christmas ST time I to-go-back home to-see parents]
At Christmas, I go back home to visit my parents.

过 (guò) – to cross
不要过马路！
bùyàoguò mǎlù
[do-not to-cross road]
Do not cross the road!

起 (qǐ) – to get up
我每天很早起床。
wǒ měitiān hěn zǎo qǐchuáng
[I every day very early to-get-up bed]
Every day I get up (of bed) very early.

到 (dào) – to arrive at, to reach
火车到站了。
huǒchē dào zhànle
[train to-arrive-at station MOD]
The train arrived at the station.

Cover background picture by Daniel H. Tong (unsplash.com)