come across

verb

came across; come across; coming across; comes across

intransitive verb

1

: to give over or furnish something demanded

especially : to pay over money

2

: to produce an impression

comes across as a good speaker

3

: come through sense 2

transitive verb

: to meet, find, or encounter especially by chance

Researchers have come across important new evidence.

Synonyms of come across

• seem
• feel
• look
• sound

Examples of come across in a Sentence

the law professor comes across as a bit of an ogre at first, but he's actually quite personable

Recent Examples on the Web

Visitors to its home page will no longer come across unforeseen book reviews, or really much writing about the arts at all. —Becca Rothfeld, New Yorker, 10 Feb. 2026

Standing outside a completely different locked restaurant, the host’s fear came across as hostility. —Literary Hub, 10 Feb. 2026

Ever since, the lanternflies have swarmed urban regions in the Northeast, while wildlife experts have encouraged people who come across them to squish them immediately to further prevent their spread. —Julia Jacobo, ABC News, 9 Feb. 2026

Use low-beam headlights if coming across any foggy conditions tomorrow morning during the commute. —Lauren Bostwick, CBS News, 8 Feb. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1775, in the meaning defined at transitive sense

Rhymes for come across

• albatross
• applesauce
• barabbas
• helios
• kshatriyas
• backcross
• crisscross
• lacrosse
• recross
• tomas
• blas
• bos