V上 / V出 / V起 / V下: figurative meanings (关上, 看出, 想起, 留下)
【四37】补语 / complements
Tone colorsā tone 1á tone 2ǎ tone 3à tone 4a neutral
After a verb, 上, 出, 起 and 下 (without 来 or 去) no longer describe a movement in space but the result of the action:
• 上 = closing, attaching, reaching: 关上门, 穿上鞋, 爱上, 考上大学.
• 出 = bringing out, identifying: 说出愿望, 看出问题, 想出办法.
• 起 = recalling, bringing up: 想起, 记起, 提起.
• 下 = leaving behind, fixing, stopping: 留下地址, 写下目标, 记下号码, 停下.
The object may come after the complement (写下一个目标, 想起他的名字), and 了 goes after the complement: 爱上了跑步, 想起了他的名字.
Do not confuse them with the compound forms 起来, 下去, 出来, 下来: 想起 takes an object (我想起了他的名字), while 想起来 often stands alone (我想起来了). And choose carefully: 想出 = come up with something new, 想起 = recall what you already knew.
Examples
请关上门，外面太吵了。
Qǐng guānshàng mén, wàimiàn tài chǎo le.Please close the door, it's too noisy outside.
他爱上了中文，所以去了中国学习。
Tā àishàng le Zhōngwén, suǒyǐ qù le Zhōngguó xuéxí.He fell in love with Chinese, so he went to China to study.
我想起了他的名字，他叫王明。
Wǒ xiǎngqǐ le tā de míngzi, tā jiào Wáng Míng.I remembered his name: he is called Wang Ming.
她一说话，我就看出她不高兴了。
Tā yì shuōhuà, wǒ jiù kànchū tā bù gāoxìng le.As soon as she spoke, I could tell she was unhappy.
请在这里写下你的名字和电话。
Qǐng zài zhèlǐ xiě xià nǐ de míngzi hé diànhuà.Please write down your name and phone number here.
走的时候，他在桌子上留下了一封信。
Zǒu de shíhou, tā zài zhuōzi shang liú xià le yì fēng xìn.When he left, he left a letter on the table.
Common mistakes
✗ 他爱了中文，所以去中国了 → ✓ 他爱上了中文 ("fall in love with" is 爱上, a change of state).
✗ 他想了她的名字 → ✓ 他想起了她的名字 ("remember" is 想起).
✗ 我想起了一个好办法 → ✓ 我想出了一个好办法 (a new idea is found: 想出; 想起 brings back what you already knew).