[Vocabulary] I see there's been trouble "down" at the factory.

[sitifan]

I see there's been trouble down at the factory. (Practical English Usage, Chinese edition, page 715)
What does "down" mean in the above sentence?

 

[GoesStation]

It's a way of adding familiarity to a location. The sentence could be clumsily reworded as I see there's been trouble at that place you and I know well: the factory.

 

[Rover_KE]

What aspect of practical English usage was being exemplified by that sentence?

 

[jutfrank]

What aspect of practical English usage was being exemplified by that sentence?

From p.73:

The simple present is used with a perfect kind of meaning (= 'I have learnt') in introductory expressions like I hear, I see, I gather, I understand.

I hear you’re getting married. (= 'I have heard ...’)
I see there’s been trouble down at the factory.
I gather Daniel’s looking for a job.

 

[emsr2d2]

In that sentence, "down" doesn't give any real extra information. We would know just as much from "I see there's been trouble at the factory". The use of "down", however, indicates that the speaker and listener are probably locals, they both know which factory is being talked about and possibly that the speaker lives either north or uphill of the factory.

You'll hear BrE speakers use these kind of directional words quite frequently, with no useful meaning.

I'm going down the shops. Do you want anything?
She's gone down the pub.
He's heading up to town.
They're going up to Mark's parents this weekend.
I'm going round [to] Sarah's later.