come about
EnglishEdit
VerbEdit
come about (third-person singular simple present comes about, present participle coming about, simple past came about, past participle come about)
- (intransitive) To come to pass; to develop; to occur; to take place; to happen.
- We have to ask, how did this come about?
- (intransitive, nautical) To tack; to change tack; to maneuver the bow of a sailing vessel across the wind so that the wind changes from one side of the vessel to the other; to position a boat with respect to the wind after tacking. See also come to.
- (intransitive) To change; to come round.
- c. 1596–1598, William Shakespeare, “The Merchant of Venice”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies: Published According to the True Originall Copies (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, OCLC 606515358, [Act II, scene vi]:
- The wind is come about.
- 1611, Ben[jamin] Jonson, Catiline His Conspiracy, London: […] [William Stansby?] for Walter Burre, OCLC 1048971098, (please specify |act=I to V):
- On better thoughts, and my urg'd reasons, / They are come about, and won to the true side.
SynonymsEdit
- (to happen) come to pass, occur, transpire; See also Thesaurus:happen
- (to tack)
- (to change)
TranslationsEdit
to come about
nautical
|
to change
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