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ENGLISH · A WORD WITH POSSIBILITIES

come.

To move nearer to the point of perspective.

4 characters1 syllables approx.English language

Meaning & usage

verb/kʌm/Received-Pronunciation[kʰʌm] ~ [kʰɐm]Received-Pronunciation/kʌm/General-American[kʰʌm]General-American
  1. To move nearer to the point of perspective.

    intransitive
    She’ll be coming round the mountain when she comes the wrong way […]
  2. To move nearer to the point of perspective. To move toward the speaker.

    intransitive
    I called the dog, but she wouldn't come.
    Stop dawdling and come here!
  3. To move nearer to the point of perspective. To move toward the listener.

    intransitive
    Hold on, I'll come in a second.
    You should ask the doctor to come to your house.
  4. To move nearer to the point of perspective. To move toward the object that is the focus of the sentence.

    intransitive
    No-one can find Bertie Wooster when his aunts come to visit.
    Hundreds of thousands of people come to Disneyland every year.
  5. To move nearer to the point of perspective. To move toward the agent or subject of the main clause.

    intransitive
    King Cnut couldn't stop the tide coming.
    He threw the boomerang, which came right back to him.
  6. To move nearer to the point of perspective. To move toward an unstated agent.

    intransitive
    The butler should come when called.
  7. To arrive.

    intransitive
  8. To appear; to manifest itself; to cause a reaction by manifesting.

    intransitive
    The pain in his leg comes and goes.
    The news came as a shock.
  9. To begin (to have an opinion or feeling).

    We came to believe that he was not so innocent after all.
    She came to think of that country as her home.
  10. To do something by chance or unintentionally.

    Could you tell me how the document came to be discovered?
  11. To take a position relative to something else in a sequence.

    intransitive
    Which letter comes before Y? Winter comes after autumn.
  12. To achieve orgasm; to cum; to ejaculate.

    intransitive · often · slang · vulgar
    She came after a few minutes.
    Come in me!
  13. To become butter by being churned.

    intransitive
  14. To approach or reach a state of being or accomplishment.

    copulative · figuratively
    They came very close to leaving on time. His test scores came close to perfect.
    One of the screws came loose, and the skateboard fell apart.
  15. To take a particular approach or point of view in regard to something.

    figuratively
    He came to SF literature a confirmed technophile, and nothing made him happier than to read a manuscript thick with imaginary gizmos and whatzits.
  16. To become, to turn out to be (often in set phrases and certain collocations).

    archaic · copulative
    come true
    come about
  17. To be supplied, or made available; to exist.

    intransitive
    He's as tough as they come.
    Our milkshakes come in vanilla, strawberry and chocolate flavours.
  18. To carry through; to succeed in.

    slang
    You can't come any tricks here.
  19. To happen.

    intransitive
    This kind of accident comes when you are careless.
  20. To have as an origin, originate. To have a certain social background.

    intransitive
  21. To have as an origin, originate. To be or have been a resident or native.

    intransitive
    Where did you come from?
  22. To have as an origin, originate. To have been brought up by or employed by.

    intransitive
    She comes from a good family.
    He comes from a disreputable legal firm.
  23. To have as an origin, originate. To begin (at a certain location); to radiate or stem (from).

    intransitive
    The river comes from Bear Lake.
    Where does this road come from?
  24. To germinate.

    intransitive
  25. To pretend to be; to behave in the manner of; to assume the role of.

    informal · transitive
    Don’t come the innocent victim. We all know who’s to blame here.
Where this word comes from

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *gʷem- Proto-Indo-European *gʷémt Proto-Germanic *kwemaną Proto-West Germanic *kweman Old English cuman Middle English comen English come 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”).

noun/kʌm/Received-Pronunciation[kʰʌm] ~ [kʰɐm]Received-Pronunciation/kʌm/General-American[kʰʌm]General-American
  1. Coming, arrival; approach.

    obsolete · uncountable
  2. Semen.

    slang · uncountable · vulgar
    When a man uses a condom during sex, he takes all of his come with him, preventing her from getting pregnant.
  3. Female ejaculatory discharge.

    slang · uncountable · vulgar
Where this word comes from

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *gʷem- Proto-Indo-European *gʷémt Proto-Germanic *kwemaną Proto-West Germanic *kweman Old English cuman Middle English comen English come 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”).

prep/kʌm/Received-Pronunciation[kʰʌm] ~ [kʰɐm]Received-Pronunciation/kʌm/General-American[kʰʌm]General-American
  1. Used to indicate a point in time at or after which a stated event or situation occurs.

    Leave it to settle for about three months and, come Christmas time, you'll have a delicious concoction to offer your guests.
    Come retirement, their Social Security may turn out to be a lot less than they counted on.
Where this word comes from

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *gʷem- Proto-Indo-European *gʷémt Proto-Germanic *kwemaną Proto-West Germanic *kweman Old English cuman Middle English comen English come 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”).

intj/kʌm/Received-Pronunciation[kʰʌm] ~ [kʰɐm]Received-Pronunciation/kʌm/General-American[kʰʌm]General-American
  1. An exclamation to express annoyance.

    dated · formal
    Come, come! Stop crying.
    Come now! Things could be worse.
  2. An exclamation to express encouragement, or to precede a request.

    dated · formal
    Come, come! You can do it.
    Come now! It won't bite you.
Where this word comes from

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *gʷem- Proto-Indo-European *gʷémt Proto-Germanic *kwemaną Proto-West Germanic *kweman Old English cuman Middle English comen English come 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”).

noun/kʌm/Received-Pronunciation[kʰʌm] ~ [kʰɐm]Received-Pronunciation/kʌm/General-American[kʰʌm]General-American
  1. Alternative form of comma in its medieval use as a middot ⟨·⟩ serving as a form of colon.

    alt-of · alternative · obsolete
Where this word comes from

See comma.

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Definitions, grammatical labels, IPA, etymology and examples: Wiktionary contributors, extracted by Kaikki / Wiktextract. Adapted under CC BY-SA 4.0. Selected fields and authored examples are shown; third-party quotations and audio are omitted. See contributor history.

Last enriched 2026-09-10. Definitions are in English. Romanizations are shown when supplied by the source; syllable estimates are omitted for unsupported scripts.