ENGLISH
REFERENCE

come back

phr. v..
A2 Elementary Oxford

phr. v.. To return to a place where you were before. It can also mean to become popular or successful again.

phr. v.. An intransitive phrasal verb meaning to return to a previous location, or to return to a former state of success or fashion.


SIMPLE

Please come back soon.

CONTEXTUAL

He left for college but promised he would come back to visit during the holidays.

COMPLEX

After years in obscurity, the once-famous author hoped her new novel would help her come back into the public eye.

Particles
back
Separability
inseparable
Pattern
come + back
Usage

Often used with 'to' for a destination or 'from' for an origin.

Teaching tip

Contrast with 'go back': 'come back' implies movement towards the speaker's location, while 'go back' implies movement away from it.

Pitfall

He came again to his home.He came back to his home.To express returning to a place, use 'come back'; 'come again' means to visit another time or is a request to repeat something.

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