I. What Does “Come” Mean? What is Phrasal Verbs With Come?

As a main verb, come generally means to move toward a person, place, or situation, usually toward the speaker or a particular destination.

Examples:

  • Please come here.
  • She came home late.
  • My parents are coming tomorrow.

The verb come has several meanings depending on the context, but its meaning changes even more when it is combined with a particle such as back, across, over, up, down, or through.

These combinations are called phrasal verbs.

For example:

  • come + back → come back = return
  • come + across → come across = find by chance
  • come + up with → come up with = think of an idea

Because these meanings cannot always be guessed from the individual words, learning them as complete phrases is essential.

What does "Come" mean?
What does “Come” mean?

30+ Common Phrasal Verbs with Come

Here is a list of common phrasal verbs with come that English learners should know.

No. Phrasal Verb Meaning Example
1 come across find something by chance I came across an old photo.
2 come along accompany someone; make progress Would you like to come along?
3 come apart separate into pieces The old book is coming apart.
4 come around visit; regain consciousness; change one’s opinion He finally came around to our idea.
5 come back return She came back from work at six.
6 come before have greater importance or priority than Safety should come before speed.
7 come by obtain or get How did you come by this information?
8 come down fall; decrease Prices have come down recently.
9 come down with become ill I came down with a cold.
10 come forward offer help or information Several witnesses came forward.
11 come from originate from This cheese comes from France.
12 come in enter Please come in and take a seat.
13 come into inherit or receive She came into a large inheritance.
14 come off succeed; become detached The sticker came off easily.
15 come on start; hurry up; encourage Come on! We’re going to be late.
16 come out be published; become known; appear Her new book came out last month.
17 come over visit someone’s home Why don’t you come over tonight?
18 come through survive; successfully deal with a difficult situation She came through the operation successfully.
19 come to regain consciousness; reach a total The bill came to $80.
20 come under be classified under; be subjected to The project comes under the education department.
21 come up appear; be mentioned; arise An interesting question came up.
22 come up against face a problem or difficulty We came up against several challenges.
23 come up with think of or produce an idea She came up with a great solution.
24 come upon find unexpectedly We came upon a small village.
25 come after follow or chase The police came after the suspect.
26 come between cause disagreement between people Money came between the two friends.
27 come clean tell the truth; admit something He finally came clean about the mistake.
28 come close to almost do something She came close to winning the competition.
29 come first have the highest priority Your safety should come first.
30 come together unite; gather The team came together to solve the problem.
31 come under attack be attacked or strongly criticized The company came under attack for its decision.
32 come into effect begin to operate or be applied The new rules will come into effect next month.
Tip: Some expressions in the list, such as come clean, come close to, and come first, are not traditional phrasal verbs in the narrowest grammatical sense. However, they are commonly taught and learned together with come expressions because they function as useful fixed combinations in English.
Common Phrasal Verbs with Come
Common Phrasal Verbs with Come

See also:

Common Confused Phrasal Verbs with Come

Some phrasal verbs with come have similar meanings or structures, making them easy to confuse.

Come Up vs. Come Up With

These two expressions are easy to confuse because they look very similar.

  • Come up

Means that something appears, happens, arises, or is mentioned.

A problem came up during the meeting.

Here, come up means that the problem arose or appeared.

  • Come up with

Means to think of, create, or produce an idea, answer, or solution.

We came up with a solution to the problem.

  • Compare
Expression Meaning Example
come up appear, arise, or be mentioned A problem came up.
come up with think of or create something We came up with a solution.

A useful way to remember the difference is:

Something comes up → you come up with an idea/solution.

Come Across vs. Come Upon

Both come across and come upon can mean find something unexpectedly.

  • Come across

More common in everyday English:

I came across an old friend at the supermarket.

I came across an interesting website yesterday.

  • Come upon

More formal or literary:

We came upon a beautiful village while hiking.

In everyday conversation, come across is generally the more natural choice.

Come In vs. Come Over

These two expressions are also commonly confused.

  • Come in

Means enter a room, building, or enclosed space.

Please come in and sit down.

  • Come over

Means visit someone’s home or the place where they are.

Why don’t you come over this evening?

  • Compare:

Come in. → Enter the room.

Come over. → Visit me at my home/place.

Come Back vs. Come Again

These expressions have different uses.

  • Come back

Means return.

She came back home at 9 p.m.

  • Come again

Usually means return another time or, in conversation, repeat what you said.

Please come again soon.

Come again? I didn’t hear you.

How to Learn Phrasal Verbs with Come Effectively

Memorizing a long list of phrasal verbs is not always the best way to learn them. Instead, try these strategies.

1. Learn the Whole Expression

Don’t memorize only: come + up

Learn:

come up = appear, arise, or be mentioned

Then learn it in a sentence.

Something unexpected came up at work.

This helps you remember how the expression is actually used.

2. Learn Phrasal Verbs in Context

A single example sentence can make the meaning much easier to remember.

For example:

I came across an old diary while cleaning my room.

From this sentence, you can understand that come across describes finding something unexpectedly.

3. Group Similar Phrasal Verbs Together

You can organize phrasal verbs by meaning:

Returning:

  • come back
  • come around

Finding something:

  • come across
  • come upon

Ideas and solutions:

  • come up with

Illness:

  • come down with

Visiting:

  • come over
  • come around

Learning them in groups can make them easier to compare and remember.

4. Pay Attention to the Particle

The particle can significantly change the meaning of come.

For example:

  • come back → return
  • come in → enter
  • come over → visit
  • come up → appear or arise
  • come down → fall or decrease
  • come through → survive or succeed

Therefore, don’t assume that the meaning of one come phrasal verb will tell you the meaning of another.

Conclusion

Mastering phrasal verbs with come will make your English sound much more natural and fluent. Want to expand your vocabulary beyond phrasal verbs with come? GuruLango offers thousands of interactive English lessons covering phrasal verbs, idioms, grammar, pronunciation, and real-life conversations. With personalized learning paths, quizzes, and spaced repetition, GuruLango helps learners build lasting English skills anytime, anywhere.