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come

v. · prep. · n.
US //ˈkəm// UK //kˈʌm// come
Irregular verb past came past participle come
  1. 1 to move toward (v.)
    A1 Beginner

    to move toward the person speaking or toward a specific place.

    to move toward the speaker or a deictic centre of perspective.

    Example

    Please come here for a moment so I can show you this photo.

    Example

    The children came running toward the gate as soon as they heard their father's car in the driveway.

    Usage

    Intransitive; often followed by 'to' and a destination.
    Pitfall
    I will go to your house tonight.
    I will come to your house tonight.

    Use 'come' when moving toward the person you are talking to, even if you are not there yet.

  2. 2 to arrive (v.)
    A1 Beginner

    to reach a place or a goal.

    to arrive at a destination or reach a particular point in time or space.

    Example

    The train should come at ten o'clock if there are no delays.

    Example

    Winter had come early that year, dusting the peaks with snow before the harvest was even finished.
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  1. 3 to originate (v.)
    A2 Elementary

    to have a particular place or family as an origin.

    to have a specified origin, such as a place, family, or source.

    Example

    Many of the students in this class come from different countries.

    Example

    The tradition comes from a time when rural communities relied on seasonal festivals to mark the passage of the year.

    Usage

    Usually followed by the preposition 'from'.
  2. 4 to be available (v.)
    B1 Intermediate

    to be sold or made in a specific way, like a certain color or size.

    to be manufactured, supplied, or made available in a specific form or variety.

    Example

    This shirt comes in three different colors: red, blue, and green.

    Example

    The new software package comes with a comprehensive manual and twenty-four-hour technical support for all registered users.

    Usage

    Often followed by 'in' or 'with'.
  3. 5 to happen (v.)
    B2 Upper Intermediate

    to take place or happen.

    to occur or happen, often as a result of something else.

    Example

    How did it come that you decided to move to London?

    Example

    It came to pass that the two rival families finally settled their differences through a strategic marriage.

    Usage

    Common in the phrase 'come to pass'.
  4. 6 to reach a state (v.)
    B1 Intermediate

    to reach a certain condition or feeling over time.

    to reach a particular state, condition, or realization through a process.

    Example

    I have come to realize that learning a language takes a lot of patience.

    Example

    After months of negotiation, the two parties have finally come to an agreement regarding the contract terms.

    Usage

    Often followed by an infinitive, like 'to realize' or 'to understand'.
  5. 7 sexual climax (v.)
    C1 Advanced Slang Vulgar

    to reach a sexual climax.

    to achieve orgasm or ejaculate.

    Example

    The movie was rated R because the characters were shown coming.

    Example

    The explicit nature of the dialogue, including references to coming, made the play controversial among more conservative audiences.

    Usage

    Intransitive; often spelled 'cum' in this specific sense.
  6. 8 by the time of (prep.)
    C1 Advanced Formal Literary

    used to talk about a time in the future when something will happen.

    used to indicate a point in time at or after which a stated event occurs.

    Example

    Come next summer, we will have lived here for ten years.

    Example

    Come the revolution, the old structures of power will be swept away by the will of the people.

    Usage

    Placed before the time or event it refers to.
  7. 9 semen (n.)
    C2 Proficiency Slang Vulgar

    the liquid that comes out of a man's body during sex.

    semen or female ejaculatory discharge.

    Example

    He wiped the come off his stomach with a towel.

    Example

    The presence of come on the sheets was used as evidence in the forensic investigation.

    Usage

    Uncountable; frequently spelled 'cum'.
Etymology 1

From Middle English comen, cumen, from Old English cuman, from Proto-West Germanic kweman, from Proto-Germanic kwemaną (“to come”), from Proto-Indo-European gʷémt (“to step; to arrive”), from gʷem- (“to come, step”). Cognates Cognate from Proto-Germanic with Scots cum (“to come”), Yola come, coome, cum (“to come”), North Frisian kaame, kame, keem, kem, kum, kååme, käme (“to come”), Saterland Frisian kume, kuume (“to come”), West Frisian komme (“to come”), Alemannic German cha, cheemen, cheme, cho, chomu, chéeme (“to come”), Bavarian ckeman, kemma, kemman, khemen, kumma, kumman, kèmmin (“to come”), Central Franconian komme, kunn, kumme (“to come”), Cimbrian ken, khemmen, khèmman (“to come”), Dutch komen, kommen (“to come”), Dutch Low Saxon kåmen (“to come”), German and Luxembourgish kommen (“to come”), Low German kamen, kuemen (“to come”), Mòcheno kemmen (“to come”), Yiddish קימען (kimen), קומען (kumen, “to come”), Danish and Norwegian Bokmål komme (“to come”), Elfdalian kumå (“to come”), Faroese and Icelandic koma (“to come; to arrive”), Jamtish kuma (“to come”), Norwegian Nynorsk koma, komma, komme, kåmmå, kåmå (“to come”), Swedish komma (“to come”), Crimean Gothic kommen (“to come”), Gothic 𐌵𐌹𐌼𐌰𐌽 (qiman, “to come”). Cognate from Proto-Indo-European with Latin venio (“to come; to approach”), Greek βήμα (víma, “pace, step”), Albanian ngah, ngaj (“to hasten, run”), Latvian dzimt (“to be born”), Lithuanian gimti (“to be born”), Armenian եկ (ek, “the act of coming, arrival; income”), Avestan 𐬔𐬀𐬨 (gam, “to come, go”), Northern Kurdish gav (“step”), Persian گام (gâm, “step”), Tocharian A kum- (“to come”), Tocharian B käm- (“to come”), Sanskrit गम् (gam, “to come, go, move”).

Etymology 2

See comma.

Word family
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