Commonly confused
Go up vs Go down
“Go up” and “Go down” look alike but pull in different directions. Here is the quick way to tell them apart — with examples, the mistake to avoid, and a check.
Which one do you mean?
Up means increase or rise; down means decrease or fall. Prices go up; prices go down.
Go up
Rise, increase, or be built.
Go down
Fall, decrease, or (of a system) stop working.
go up
- 1
Rise in price or amount
Correct use
“Rents have gone up again.”
Rental prices have risen yet again.
go down
- 1
Become lower in amount or number
Correct use
“Petrol prices have gone down again.”
The price of petrol has dropped once again.
Common mistake
Prices went down, so everything is more expensive now.
Prices went up, so everything is more expensive now.
More expensive means prices went up.
Test yourself
“Rents have gone up again.” What does it mean?
Follow the pattern
Continue through the matching verb family and particle guides.
Sink In — iOS & Android
Stop mixing them up
Sink In turns confusable pairs like this into quick contrast drills, so the right particle becomes automatic instead of a guess.
- Learn the pattern behind dozens of verbs at once — not one-off translations.
- Spaced repetition (SM-2) brings each meaning back right before you forget.
- Four practice modes train recall and discrimination, not just recognition.
