The Chinese expression qǐlai 起来 has both literal and figurative applications.
Qǐlai 起来 are used in three ways in Chinese.
Firstly, you can use Verb + qǐlai 起来 to express upward movement. For example, jiǎn qǐlai 捡起来 to pick up or zhàn qǐlai 站起来 to stand up.
To ask someone to stand up, you can say Nǐ zhàn qǐlái 你站起来.
In terms of what it means at its most basic level, you can use qǐlai 起来 in the sense of lifting or moving something up. The grammatical structure is 把 + object + verb + qǐlai 起来. This phrase emphasizes the strong move up.
Examples:
苹果都掉到地上了，快捡起来！
Píngguǒ dōu diào dào dìshàngle, kuài jiǎn qǐlái!
The apples have fallen to the ground. Hurry, pick them up!
不要动，把手举起来！
Bùyào dòng, bǎshǒu jǔ qǐlái!
Don’t move. Put your hands up!
USING QǏLAI 起来 TO SHOW THAT SOMETHING HAS STARTED OR IS GOING ON
By using verb + qǐlai 起来 you can also show that something has started and is still going on. In these situations, qǐlai 起来 is only used with spontaneous actions, like chàng 唱 to sing, tiào 跳 to jump, liáo 聊 to chat, or with states like rè 热 hot, lěng 冷 cold, or hǎo 好 good etc.
Verb + qǐlai 起来 cannot be used with planned actions.
For example, this example is right:
夏天到了，天气慢慢热起来了
Xiàtiān dàole, tiānqì màn man rè qǐláile
Summer is here, and the weather is getting warmer.
Let’s say you want to ask when a person is starting class, and then you ask. This example is wrong because the action was planned:
你几点上课起来？
Nǐ jǐ diǎn shàngkè qǐlái?
Having a class is planned action, so we can not use qǐlai 起来. We ought to say:
你几点开始上课？
Nǐ jǐ diǎn kāishǐ shàngkè?
What time do you start class?
USING QǏLAI 起来 TO EXPRESS JUDGEMENT
Another way to use qǐlai 起来 is to describe the feeling of something you look at, listen to, feel, etc.
When used to make an initial assessment, qǐlai 起来 express that the speaker has just taken action and, based on that, has made a quick judgment.
The is a typical sentence structure when you use qǐlai 起来:
Subject + Verb + qǐlai 起来 + Adverb + Adjective
This structure is often used in Chinese with perception verbs like chī 吃 to eat, kàn 看 to see, tīng 听 to listen etc.
Example:
这个人看起来很友善。
Zhège rén kàn qǐlái hěn yǒushàn.
This person looks friendly.
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