1
: something (such as an advertising promotion) intended to entice or allure
2
: a usually sexual advance
came on; come on; coming on; comes on
1
a
: to advance by degrees
darkness came on
b
: to begin by degrees
rain came on toward noon
2
a
: please
—used in cajoling or pleading
b
—used interjectionally to express astonishment, incredulity, or recognition of a put-on
3
: to project an indicated personal image
comes on as a conservative
4
: to show sexual interest in someone
also
: to make sexual advances
—usually used with to
tried to come on to her
Synonyms
Examples of come-on in a Sentence
Noun
the spectacular sale was enough of a come-on to get many shoppers to try the store for the first time
Recent Examples on the Web
Chris Vognar, Los Angeles Times, 1 Dec. 2023
The whole ride, she’s been pursing her lips and meeting his gaze in the rearview mirror in ways that some men might take as a come-on.
—Peter Debruge, Variety, 3 Sep. 2023
Or the Hollywood sign, originally a real-estate come-on and the site of an early movieland suicide.
—John Anderson, wsj.com, 25 Apr. 2023
And though Jaxton is an obvious skeeve, decentering his maleness only as a kind of tantric come-on, Foley does it so well that the character is somehow attractive.
—Jesse Green, New York Times, 20 Apr. 2023
The show's diva/icon/legend/the-moment-now-come-on is Ni'Jah, whose entire aesthetic and many major life and career achievements are lifted directly from the life of one Beyoncé Giselle Knowles-Carter.
—Lester Fabian Brathwaite, EW.com, 21 Mar. 2023
Giveaways, gimmicks, and novelty come-ons of all sorts proliferated.
—Thomas Doherty, The Hollywood Reporter, 17 Mar. 2023
This sort of blanket approach targets a common practice among robotexters, which is to use different numbers (real or spoofed) to originate successive come-ons or phishing attempts.
—Jon Healey, Anchorage Daily News, 17 Mar. 2023
But she isn’t intimidated by the brothers, illustrated early on by her initial rebuff of Albert’s come-on.
—Don Aucoin, BostonGlobe.com, 16 Mar. 2023
Jim Lindgren, San Diego Union-Tribune, 19 May 2024
The news came on and all of a sudden, my face and his face were on all the stations — NBC, CBS and ABC.
—Liam Quinn, Peoplemag, 17 May 2024
The third out came on the hidden ball trick, with Oxford Academy shortstop Spessert tagging out Medina when Medina started his lead off.
—Steve Fryer, Orange County Register, 17 May 2024
After the initial blackout caused by the closed exhaust damper, investigators say a backup generator automatically came on.
—Lea Skene, Fortune, 15 May 2024
His last home run came on April 4 against the Chicago White Sox at Kauffman Stadium.
—Jaylon Thompson, Kansas City Star, 15 May 2024
But the biggest news of the day was actually about testimony that is set to come on Monday when Trump's former lawyer, Michael Cohen, is expected to take the stand.
—Sara Ganim, USA TODAY, 14 May 2024
The latest developments in the ongoing tribal dispute come on the heels of the backlash Noem faced for writing about killing a hunting dog that misbehaved in her latest book.
—CBS News, 13 May 2024
Muncy’s grand slam, the opposite way to left-center field, came on Cabrera’s second pitch of the at-bat.
—Miami Herald, 8 May 2024
Noun
Books Is Madonna a game-changing feminist or capitalist come-on?
—Chris Vognar, Los Angeles Times, 1 Dec. 2023
The whole ride, she’s been pursing her lips and meeting his gaze in the rearview mirror in ways that some men might take as a come-on.
—Peter Debruge, Variety, 3 Sep. 2023
Or the Hollywood sign, originally a real-estate come-on and the site of an early movieland suicide.
—John Anderson, wsj.com, 25 Apr. 2023
And though Jaxton is an obvious skeeve, decentering his maleness only as a kind of tantric come-on, Foley does it so well that the character is somehow attractive.
—Jesse Green, New York Times, 20 Apr. 2023
The show's diva/icon/legend/the-moment-now-come-on is Ni'Jah, whose entire aesthetic and many major life and career achievements are lifted directly from the life of one Beyoncé Giselle Knowles-Carter.
—Lester Fabian Brathwaite, EW.com, 21 Mar. 2023
Giveaways, gimmicks, and novelty come-ons of all sorts proliferated.
—Thomas Doherty, The Hollywood Reporter, 17 Mar. 2023
This sort of blanket approach targets a common practice among robotexters, which is to use different numbers (real or spoofed) to originate successive come-ons or phishing attempts.
—Jon Healey, Anchorage Daily News, 17 Mar. 2023
But she isn’t intimidated by the brothers, illustrated early on by her initial rebuff of Albert’s come-on.
—Don Aucoin, BostonGlobe.com, 16 Mar. 2023
Verb
Two of those came on point-black shots with 4:06 and 3:15 to play.
—Jim Lindgren, San Diego Union-Tribune, 19 May 2024
The news came on and all of a sudden, my face and his face were on all the stations — NBC, CBS and ABC.
—Liam Quinn, Peoplemag, 17 May 2024
The third out came on the hidden ball trick, with Oxford Academy shortstop Spessert tagging out Medina when Medina started his lead off.
—Steve Fryer, Orange County Register, 17 May 2024
After the initial blackout caused by the closed exhaust damper, investigators say a backup generator automatically came on.
—Lea Skene, Fortune, 15 May 2024
His last home run came on April 4 against the Chicago White Sox at Kauffman Stadium.
—Jaylon Thompson, Kansas City Star, 15 May 2024
But the biggest news of the day was actually about testimony that is set to come on Monday when Trump's former lawyer, Michael Cohen, is expected to take the stand.
—Sara Ganim, USA TODAY, 14 May 2024
The latest developments in the ongoing tribal dispute come on the heels of the backlash Noem faced for writing about killing a hunting dog that misbehaved in her latest book.
—CBS News, 13 May 2024
Muncy’s grand slam, the opposite way to left-center field, came on Cabrera’s second pitch of the at-bat.
—Miami Herald, 8 May 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'come-on.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near come-on
Cite this Entry
“Come-on.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/come-on. Accessed 23 May. 2024.
Copy CitationLegal Definition
come on
intransitive verb
: to be brought forward (as a case in court)
the first prize case of the war…came on for trial—W. G. Young
W. G. YoungLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
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