'To come about' definitions:
Definition of 'To come about'
From: GCIDE
- Come \Come\, v. i. [imp. Came; p. p. Come; p. pr & vb. n. Coming.] [OE. cumen, comen, AS. cuman; akin to OS.kuman, D. komen, OHG. queman, G. kommen, Icel. koma, Sw. komma, Dan. komme, Goth. giman, L. venire (gvenire), Gr. ? to go, Skr. gam. [root]23. Cf. Base, n., Convene, Adventure.]
- 1. To move hitherward; to draw near; to approach the speaker, or some place or person indicated; -- opposed to go. [1913 Webster]
- Look, who comes yonder? --Shak. [1913 Webster]
- I did not come to curse thee. --Tennyson. [1913 Webster]
- 2. To complete a movement toward a place; to arrive. [1913 Webster]
- When we came to Rome. --Acts xxviii. 16. [1913 Webster]
- Lately come from Italy. --Acts xviii. 2. [1913 Webster]
- 3. To approach or arrive, as if by a journey or from a distance. "Thy kingdom come." --Matt. vi. 10. [1913 Webster]
- The hour is coming, and now is. --John. v. 25. [1913 Webster]
- So quick bright things come to confusion. --Shak. [1913 Webster]
- 4. To approach or arrive, as the result of a cause, or of the act of another. [1913 Webster]
- From whence come wars? --James iv. 1. [1913 Webster]
- Both riches and honor come of thee ! --1 Chron. xxix. 12. [1913 Webster]
- 5. To arrive in sight; to be manifest; to appear. [1913 Webster]
- Then butter does refuse to come. --Hudibras. [1913 Webster]
- 6. To get to be, as the result of change or progress; -- with a predicate; as, to come untied. [1913 Webster]
- How come you thus estranged? --Shak. [1913 Webster]
- How come her eyes so bright? --Shak. [1913 Webster]
- Note: Am come, is come, etc., are frequently used instead of have come, has come, etc., esp. in poetry. The verb to be gives a clearer adjectival significance to the participle as expressing a state or condition of the subject, while the auxiliary have expresses simply the completion of the action signified by the verb. [1913 Webster]
- Think not that I am come to destroy. --Matt. v. 17. [1913 Webster]
- We are come off like Romans. --Shak. [1913 Webster]
- The melancholy days are come, the saddest of the year. --Bryant. [1913 Webster]
- Note: Come may properly be used (instead of go) in speaking of a movement hence, or away, when there is reference to an approach to the person addressed; as, I shall come home next week; he will come to your house to-day. It is used with other verbs almost as an auxiliary, indicative of approach to the action or state expressed by the verb; as, how came you to do it? Come is used colloquially, with reference to a definite future time approaching, without an auxiliary; as, it will be two years, come next Christmas; i. e., when Christmas shall come. [1913 Webster]
- They were cried In meeting, come next Sunday. --Lowell. Come, in the imperative, is used to excite attention, or to invite to motion or joint action; come, let us go. "This is the heir; come, let us kill him." --Matt. xxi. 38. When repeated, it sometimes expresses haste, or impatience, and sometimes rebuke. "Come, come, no time for lamentation now." --Milton. [1913 Webster]
- To come, yet to arrive, future. "In times to come." --Dryden. "There's pippins and cheese to come." --Shak.
- To come about. (a) To come to pass; to arrive; to happen; to result; as, how did these things come about? (b) To change; to come round; as, the ship comes about. "The wind is come about." --Shak. [1913 Webster]
- On better thoughts, and my urged reasons, They are come about, and won to the true side. --B. Jonson.
- To come abroad. (a) To move or be away from one's home or country. "Am come abroad to see the world." --Shak. (b) To become public or known. [Obs.] "Neither was anything kept secret, but that it should come abroad." --Mark. iv. 22.
- To come across, to meet; to find, esp. by chance or suddenly. "We come across more than one incidental mention of those wars." --E. A. Freeman. "Wagner's was certainly one of the strongest and most independent natures I ever came across." --H. R. Haweis.
- To come after. (a) To follow. (b) To come to take or to obtain; as, to come after a book.
- To come again, to return. "His spirit came again and he revived." --Judges. xv. 19. -
- To come and go. (a) To appear and disappear; to change; to alternate. "The color of the king doth come and go." --Shak. (b) (Mech.) To play backward and forward.
- To come at. (a) To reach; to arrive within reach of; to gain; as, to come at a true knowledge of ourselves. (b) To come toward; to attack; as, he came at me with fury.
- To come away, to part or depart.
- To come between, to intervene; to separate; hence, to cause estrangement.
- To come by. (a) To obtain, gain, acquire. "Examine how you came by all your state." --Dryden. (b) To pass near or by way of.
- To come down. (a) To descend. (b) To be humbled.
- To come down upon, to call to account, to reprimand. [Colloq.] --Dickens.
- To come home. (a) To return to one's house or family. (b) To come close; to press closely; to touch the feelings, interest, or reason. (c) (Naut.) To be loosened from the ground; -- said of an anchor.
- To come in. (a) To enter, as a town, house, etc. "The thief cometh in." --Hos. vii. 1. (b) To arrive; as, when my ship comes in. (c) To assume official station or duties; as, when Lincoln came in. (d) To comply; to yield; to surrender. "We need not fear his coming in" --Massinger. (e) To be brought into use. "Silken garments did not come in till late." --Arbuthnot. (f) To be added or inserted; to be or become a part of. (g) To accrue as gain from any business or investment. (h) To mature and yield a harvest; as, the crops come in well. (i) To have sexual intercourse; -- with to or unto. --Gen. xxxviii. 16. (j) To have young; to bring forth; as, the cow will come in next May. [U. S.]
- To come in for, to claim or receive. "The rest came in for subsidies." --Swift.
- To come into, to join with; to take part in; to agree to; to comply with; as, to come into a party or scheme.
- To come it over, to hoodwink; to get the advantage of. [Colloq.]
- To come near or To come nigh, to approach in place or quality; to be equal to. "Nothing ancient or modern seems to come near it." --Sir W. Temple.
- To come of. (a) To descend or spring from. "Of Priam's royal race my mother came." --Dryden. (b) To result or follow from. "This comes of judging by the eye." --L'Estrange.
- To come off. (a) To depart or pass off from. (b) To get free; to get away; to escape. (c) To be carried through; to pass off; as, it came off well. (d) To acquit one's self; to issue from (a contest, etc.); as, he came off with honor; hence, substantively, a come-off, an escape; an excuse; an evasion. [Colloq.] (e) To pay over; to give. [Obs.] (f) To take place; to happen; as, when does the race come off? (g) To be or become after some delay; as, the weather came off very fine. (h) To slip off or be taken off, as a garment; to separate. (i) To hurry away; to get through. --Chaucer.
- To come off by, to suffer. [Obs.] "To come off by the worst." --Calamy.
- To come off from, to leave. "To come off from these grave disquisitions." --Felton.
- To come on. (a) To advance; to make progress; to thrive. (b) To move forward; to approach; to supervene.
- To come out. (a) To pass out or depart, as from a country, room, company, etc. "They shall come out with great substance." --Gen. xv. 14. (b) To become public; to appear; to be published. "It is indeed come out at last." --Bp. Stillingfleet. (c) To end; to result; to turn out; as, how will this affair come out? he has come out well at last. (d) To be introduced into society; as, she came out two seasons ago. (e) To appear; to show itself; as, the sun came out. (f) To take sides; to announce a position publicly; as, he came out against the tariff. (g) To publicly admit oneself to be homosexual.
- To come out with, to give publicity to; to disclose.
- To come over. (a) To pass from one side or place to another. "Perpetually teasing their friends to come over to them." --Addison. (b) To rise and pass over, in distillation.
- To come over to, to join.
- To come round. (a) To recur in regular course. (b) To recover. [Colloq.] (c) To change, as the wind. (d) To relent. --J. H. Newman. (e) To circumvent; to wheedle. [Colloq.]
- To come short, to be deficient; to fail of attaining. "All have sinned and come short of the glory of God." --Rom. iii. 23.
- To come to. (a) To consent or yield. --Swift. (b) (Naut.) (with the accent on to) To luff; to bring the ship's head nearer the wind; to anchor. (c) (with the accent on to) To recover, as from a swoon. (d) To arrive at; to reach. (e) To amount to; as, the taxes come to a large sum. (f) To fall to; to be received by, as an inheritance. --Shak.
- To come to blows. See under Blow.
- To come to grief. See under Grief.
- To come to a head. (a) To suppurate, as a boil. (b) To mature; to culminate; as a plot.
- To come to one's self, to recover one's senses.
- To come to pass, to happen; to fall out.
- To come to the scratch. (a) (Prize Fighting) To step up to the scratch or mark made in the ring to be toed by the combatants in beginning a contest; hence: (b) To meet an antagonist or a difficulty bravely. [Colloq.]
- To come to time. (a) (Prize Fighting) To come forward in order to resume the contest when the interval allowed for rest is over and "time" is called; hence: (b) To keep an appointment; to meet expectations. [Colloq.]
- To come together. (a) To meet for business, worship, etc.; to assemble. --Acts i. 6. (b) To live together as man and wife. --Matt. i. 18.
- To come true, to happen as predicted or expected.
- To come under, to belong to, as an individual to a class.
- To come up (a) to ascend; to rise. (b) To be brought up; to arise, as a question. (c) To spring; to shoot or rise above the earth, as a plant. (d) To come into use, as a fashion.
- To come up the capstan (Naut.), to turn it the contrary way, so as to slacken the rope about it.
- To come up the tackle fall (Naut.), to slacken the tackle gently. --Totten.
- To come up to, to rise to; to equal.
- To come up with, to overtake or reach by pursuit.
- To come upon. (a) To befall. (b) To attack or invade. (c) To have a claim upon; to become dependent upon for support; as, to come upon the town. (d) To light or chance upon; to find; as, to come upon hid treasure. [1913 Webster]
Words containing 'To come about'
- Come,
- Comely,
- Comes,
- Coming,
- Coming in,
- To come,
- To come after,
- To come again,
- To come at,
- To come between,
- To come by,
- To come down,
- To come in,
- To come in for,
- To come into,
- To come it,
- To come it over,
- To come of,
- To come off,
- To come off by,
- To come off from,
- To come on,
- To come out,
- To come out with,
- To come over,
- To come over to,
- To come to,
- To come under,
- To come up,
- To come up to,
- To come up with,
- come about,
- come after,
- come again,
- come at,
- come before,
- come between,
- come by,
- come down,
- come down on,
- come in,
- come in for,
- come into,
- come into being,
- come of,
- come off,
- come on,
- come out,
- come over,
- come through,
- come to,
- come up,
- come up against,
- come up to,
- come with,
- coming out,
- have it coming,
- To come abroad,
- To come across,
- To come and go,
- To come away,
- To come down upon,
- To come home,
- To come honestly by,
- To come into play,
- To come near,
- To come near to,
- To come nigh,
- To come round,
- To come short,
- To come to a head,
- To come to blows,
- To come to grief,
- To come to hand,
- To come to light,
- To come to pass,
- To come to the front,
- To come to the ground,
- To come to the scratch,
- To come to time,
- To come together,
- To come true,
- To come up the capstan,
- To come upon,
- To go and come,
- bid come,
- come across,
- come alive,
- come along,
- come and go,
- come apart,
- come around,
- come away,
- come back,
- come back at,
- come clean,
- come close,
- come forth,
- come forward,
- come hither,
- come home,
- come in handy,
- come near,
- come of age,
- come out of the closet,
- come round,
- come short,
- come to grips,
- come to hand,
- come to life,
- come to light,
- come to mind,
- come to nothing,
- come to pass,
- come to terms,
- come to the fore,
- come together,
- come true,
- come upon,
- come what may,
- come-on,
- coming and going,
- coming attraction,
- coming back,
- coming into court,
- coming of christ,
- coming together,
- coming upon,
- kingdom come,
- second coming,
- time to come,
- up-and-coming,
- when the time comes,
- All is grist that comes to his mill,
- Come-along,
- Come-outer,
- To come in at the hawse holes,
- To come off with flying colors,
- To come one's way,
- To come or draw to a head,
- To come to one's self,
- To come up the tackle fall,
- come hither look,
- come-at-able,
- home-coming,
- second coming of christ,
- whatever may come,
- come hell or high water,
- un-come-at-able,
- first-come-first-serve,
- first-come-first-served