come by

verb

came by; come by; coming by; comes by
Synonyms of come bynext

transitive verb

: to get possession of : acquire
A good job is hard to come by.

intransitive verb

: to make a visit
came by after dinner

Examples of come by in a Sentence

come by after work and I'll give you some clothes for the rummage sale a literary award like that isn't easy to come by
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Also, Sharpies with adequate ink still left in them are difficult to come by. Literary Hub, 11 Dec. 2025 Snow, on the other hand, has been a bit harder to come by. Terry Eliasen, CBS News, 11 Dec. 2025 But traces of fire use are difficult to come by, leaving archaeologists’ attempts to date these developments frustrated. Meghan Bartels, Scientific American, 10 Dec. 2025 None of the games were particularly close, with each win coming by a double-digit margin. Kilty Cleary, MSNBC Newsweek, 9 Dec. 2025 See All Example Sentences for come by

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense

Time Traveler
The first known use of come by was in the 14th century

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Come by.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/come%20by. Accessed 13 Dec. 2025.

Kids Definition

come by

verb
1
: to make a visit
come by after dinner
2
: acquire
good help is hard to come by
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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