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

The young woman … had come forward after six months to accuse him of assault.

—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

Examples of come forward in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The Miami-Dade State Attorney’s Office a year later reexamined the case after witnesses who had never been interviewed by investigators came forward disputing major aspects of the probe. —David Goodhue, Miami Herald, 28 June 2025

Nikola Jokic, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander Lead Favorites Tom Cruise Posts Emotional Throwback to Iconic NASCAR Film Amid Sequel Rumors As the shelter worked out a solution for the dog, the unexpected happened—the dog's owner came forward. —Alyce Collins, MSNBC Newsweek, 27 June 2025

To further emphasize their courage in breaking taboos and coming forward to speak about the disease in public, the women portrayed wear traditional Malagasy face masks. —Diane Cole, NPR, 21 June 2025

Authorities have asked the public to come forward with any leads that can help identify the suspect. —Vivian Kwarm, New York Daily News, 20 June 2025

Rhymes for come forward

• carryforward
• equatorward
• henceforward
• straightforward
• thenceforward
• shoreward

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.

coming forward with the evidence