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I'm a brazilian native and I'm curious about the use of up in sentences.

For instance:

  • set up;
  • grow up;
  • get up;

What's the real meaning/role of up in these phrases? I don't know if my perspective about the problem is different than yours – probably it is –, but it's difficult for me to understand this case of use.

Can someone clarify this question/issue for me?

Thanks in advance.

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Up has many meanings, and not all of them concern movement in a vertical direction. Your three examples are what are commonly known as phrasal verbs, and they need to be understood as a whole. Even those three can mean different things in different contexts, but set up often means ‘establish’, grow up often means’ become an adult’ and get up often means ‘leave the bed at the start of the day’.

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