come forward
phrasal verb
came forward; come forward; coming forward; comes forward
: to make the effort required to provide information, make a claim, volunteer, etc.
No one has yet come forward to claim the reward.
Essex Police is now appealing for anyone with information or dash cam footage of the crash to come forward and help with their inquiries.—
Alex Gidden
Alex GiddenThe young woman … had come forward after six months to accuse him of assault.—Jules De Cinque
Jules De Cinque
also
: to become publicly known
While the case was dropped the prosecutor says if substantial evidence came forward this case could go to a trial in the future … —Don Granese
Don Granese 
Examples of come forward in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Having come forward in 2022 with claims that she had been disfigured during a cosmetic procedure, and having also survived both cancer and spousal abuse, Evangelista has lived a lot of life.
—Daniel D'addario, Variety, 20 Sep. 2023
Since the #MeToo movement erupted in 2017 and survivors have come forward to the media, on social media or through the legal system, defamation and libel lawsuits have been a common strategy among those accused of misconduct.
—Ethan Millman, Rolling Stone, 20 Sep. 2023
The issue was spotlighted in a BBC documentary earlier this year, and received fresh attention in April after a former star trainee came forward with allegations that he and multiple other young men were abused by Kitagawa.
—Jessie Yeung, CNN, 7 Sep. 2023
The release of an hourlong BBC documentary in March featuring interviews with three of Mr. Kitagawa’s accusers opened a floodgate of recrimination, prompting more men to come forward and putting pressure on the company to respond.
—Ben Dooley, New York Times, 7 Sep. 2023
An Alabama sample wedding dress shop and a Louisiana bridal boutique have come forward as the donators of a wedding dress that was recently the subject of a viral TikTok.
—Tandra Smith | Tsmith@al.com, al, 16 Sep. 2023
The whistle-blowers came forward with concerns that Mr. Paxton appeared to be going out of his way to help Mr. Paul.
—David Montgomery, New York Times, 16 Sep. 2023
May more absolute crackpots come forward with their petrified duendes and brujas voladoras.
—Alex Zaragoza, Los Angeles Times, 15 Sep. 2023
Several aides in Paxton's office came forward in 2020, alleging that Paxton influenced employees to get involved in legal disputes that would benefit Paul and his business.
—Caroline Linton, CBS News, 15 Sep. 2023
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Daniel D'addario, Variety, 20 Sep. 2023
Since the #MeToo movement erupted in 2017 and survivors have come forward to the media, on social media or through the legal system, defamation and libel lawsuits have been a common strategy among those accused of misconduct.
—Ethan Millman, Rolling Stone, 20 Sep. 2023
The issue was spotlighted in a BBC documentary earlier this year, and received fresh attention in April after a former star trainee came forward with allegations that he and multiple other young men were abused by Kitagawa.
—Jessie Yeung, CNN, 7 Sep. 2023
The release of an hourlong BBC documentary in March featuring interviews with three of Mr. Kitagawa’s accusers opened a floodgate of recrimination, prompting more men to come forward and putting pressure on the company to respond.
—Ben Dooley, New York Times, 7 Sep. 2023
An Alabama sample wedding dress shop and a Louisiana bridal boutique have come forward as the donators of a wedding dress that was recently the subject of a viral TikTok.
—Tandra Smith | Tsmith@al.com, al, 16 Sep. 2023
The whistle-blowers came forward with concerns that Mr. Paxton appeared to be going out of his way to help Mr. Paul.
—David Montgomery, New York Times, 16 Sep. 2023
May more absolute crackpots come forward with their petrified duendes and brujas voladoras.
—Alex Zaragoza, Los Angeles Times, 15 Sep. 2023
Several aides in Paxton's office came forward in 2020, alleging that Paxton influenced employees to get involved in legal disputes that would benefit Paul and his business.
—Caroline Linton, CBS News, 15 Sep. 2023
See More
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'come forward.' 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 forward
Cite this Entry
“Come forward.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/come%20forward. Accessed 1 Oct. 2023.
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Legal Definition
come forward
intransitive verb
come for·ward
: to make a presentation of something to the court
—usually used with with
must come forward with materials to show that there is a genuine issue of fact—J. H. Friedenthal et al.
J. H. Friedenthal et al.coming forward with the evidence
More from Merriam-Webster on come forward
Nglish: Translation of come forward for Spanish Speakers
Britannica English: Translation of come forward for Arabic Speakers
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