come back 1 of 2

verb

Definition of come backnext
1
as in to recover
to become healthy and strong again after illness or weakness she's slowly coming back after being in a coma

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to bounce (back)
to regain a former or normal state the American bald eagle was once nearly extinct but has come back strong

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in to respond
to speak or write in reaction to a question or to another reaction he came back with another one of his smart remarks

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

comeback

2 of 2

noun

ˈkəm-ˌbak How to pronounce comeback (audio)
1
as in retort
a quick witty response always ready with a comeback for every insult

Synonyms & Similar Words
2
as in response
something spoken or written in reaction especially to a question regardless of the question posed by the prosecutor, the witness had a plausible comeback

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in rehabilitation
the process or period of gradually regaining one's health and strength trying to make a comeback after a career-threatening injury

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

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.
Recent Examples of come back
Verb
An engagement score declines, a review meeting goes flat, a survey response comes back indifferent—and the team responds. — Frank Auger, Forbes.com, 20 July 2026 Belgium shocked Senegal, coming back from a 2-0 deficit, to secure its trip to the Round of 16. — Adam Lichtenstein, Sun Sentinel, 20 July 2026
Noun
Before its latest comeback, the Beatles favorite had not been seen on the Official Singles ranking since July 2024. — Hugh McIntyre, Forbes.com, 22 July 2026 Burnham appointed Miliband Monday, replacing Yvette Cooper and completing a remarkable political comeback for the former Labour Party leader. — Efrat Lachter, FOXNews.com, 21 July 2026 See All Example Sentences for come back
Recent Examples of Synonyms for come back
  1. recover
  2. rebound
  3. respond
  4. retort
  5. response
  6. rehabilitation
  7. improve
  8. rally
Verb
  • The body of a second victim was recovered Thursday following the sinking of a three-level yacht near Alcatraz Island and has been identified by San Francisco authorities as a Sacramento County resident.
    — Michael McGough Updated July 16, Sacbee.com, 17 July 2026
  • This could soon change, at least for China, which recovered its first reusable orbital-class rocket booster following a launch earlier this month.
    — Stephen Clark, ArsTechnica, 16 July 2026
Definition of recover
Verb
  • Ogwumike finished with 18 points and 12 rebounds, also moving past Candace Parker (3,467) into third on the WNBA’s career rebounds list with 3,472.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 17 July 2026
  • Only in recent years, thanks to auteurs like Nolan and Denis Villeneuve, has interest in the format begun to rebound, even if the format remains a niche experience.
    — Antonio Ferme, Variety, 16 July 2026
Definition of rebound
Verb
  • In 2018, Ortega responded to widespread anti-government protests with a crackdown in which more than 300 people were killed.
    — CNN Money, CNN Money, 21 July 2026
  • The federal defender’s office for the region did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
    — Dennis Romero, NBC news, 21 July 2026
Definition of respond
Noun
  • In a blistering retort on Instagram, Paris’ deputy mayor Audrey Pulvar stepped into the arena on Grégoire’s behalf, blasting American commentators for mocking France’s climate woes while contributing the most to global emissions.
    — Joe Wilkins, Futurism, 1 July 2026
  • Rob-Will's bloody-mouthed Rip retort was just as classic.
    — Bryan Alexander, USA Today, 19 June 2026
Definition of retort
Noun
  • When teammates learned Skubal could be back in roughly a month, the response in the Tigers clubhouse was visceral.
    — Cody Stavenhagen, New York Times, 22 July 2026
  • In response, Tehran warned that that any US attack on Iranian nuclear facilities would be treated as an expansion of the war in the region, state media reported early Wednesday.
    — Jessie Yeung, CNN Money, 22 July 2026
Definition of response
Noun
  • City officials, particularly City Council member Darrell Curls of the Fifth District at-Large, have since worked on how to address the property’s blight and move forward with a plan for rehabilitation and reuse of the property.
    — Chris Higgins, Kansas City Star, 23 July 2026
  • After multiple surgeries and extensive rehabilitation, his body could no longer continue, forcing him to step away from the mound.
    — Peter Chawaga, Forbes.com, 22 July 2026
Definition of rehabilitation
Verb
  • With the aim of producing an addition 200,000 degrees beyond the 1 million already projected for 2030, the university set goals to improve its graduation rates.
    — Tarini Mehta, Sacbee.com, 22 July 2026
  • Given the tools on show in the macOS beta closely match those on iOS, coupled with Apple’s push to unify as many of its operating system features, there will be some cross-platform data to improve this part of Siri AI.
    — Ewan Spence, Forbes.com, 22 July 2026
Definition of improve
Verb
  • At least, that’s how North Carolina’s star receiver portrayed the situation, with the Tar Heels looking to rally together around their 74-year-old, six-time Super Bowl-winning head coach after last year’s 4-8 campaign.
    — Mike Griffith, AJC.com, 18 July 2026
  • Ireland rallied, scoring through fullback Hugo Keenan in the 63rd minute.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 18 July 2026
Definition of rally

Phrases Containing come back

Browse Nearby Words

come around
come back
comeback
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Come back.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/come%20back. Accessed 23 Jul. 2026.

Copy Citation

More from Merriam-Webster on come back

Nglish: Translation of come back for Spanish Speakers

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of maverick

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Democracy or Republic: What's the difference?

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Do you 'say your piece' or 'say your peace'?

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

The Longest Long Words List

Ten Words Ending with a Silent ‘T’

The Words of the Week - Jul 24

Why do we say 'fly off the handle'?
See More

Popular

See More

Democracy or Republic: What's the difference?

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

The Longest Long Words List
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
thumbnail graphic with text word of the day quiz
Weekly "Word of the Day" Quiz See how well you know each Word of the Day for Ju...
See All