起来
qǐ lái
Everything 起来 does comes from one picture: standing up
The picture Something lying flat pushing itself upright. What wasn't there stands up; what was scattered gets gathered and stood up too. 起来 lifts something low into standing; 下去 lets something already moving keep sinking onward.
Where the picture shows up in 起来
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a body rising
闹钟响了，快起来。
nàozhōng xiǎng le, kuài qǐ lái
The alarm went off — get up.
A body under the duvet pushing its chest up and standing off the bed.
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a sound rising
孩子突然哭起来了。
háizi tūrán kū qǐ lái le
The child suddenly burst into tears.
A cry springing up off the floor of a quiet room and staying up.
起来 marks not just the start but the start that keeps going.
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gathered and stood up
把桌上的东西收起来。
bǎ zhuō shang de dōngxi shōu qǐ lái
Put away the things on the desk, please.
Scattered things on a desk swept together by two hands and stacked into one pile.
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a memory rising
我想起来了，钥匙在包里。
wǒ xiǎng qǐ lái le, yàoshi zài bāo li
I remember now — the keys are in the bag.
A sunken scene floating up to the surface and standing in front of your eyes.
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rising to the senses
这件衣服看起来很贵。
zhè jiàn yīfu kàn qǐ lái hěn guì
This jacket looks expensive.
The feeling 'expensive' rising up under your gaze as you look the jacket over.
All of it in one picture
起来 is one picture: something low pushing itself upright. A sleeping body stands and you are awake; a cry that was not there stands and the child has started crying and keeps on; scattered things gathered and stacked stand as a tidied pile. A sunken memory floating up and standing is remembering, and a feeling rising while you look at a jacket is how it looks to you. So wherever 起来 attaches, something flat or absent has risen into view.