to come by

from The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48
Come \Come\, v. i. [imp. {Came}; p. p. {Come}; p. pr & vb. n.
   {Coming}.] [OE. cumen, comen, AS. cuman; akin to OS.kuman, D.
   komen, OHG. queman, G. kommen, Icel. koma, Sw. komma, Dan.
   komme, Goth. giman, L. venire (gvenire), Gr. ? to go, Skr.
   gam. [root]23. Cf. {Base}, n., {Convene}, {Adventure}.]
   1. To move hitherward; to draw near; to approach the speaker,
      or some place or person indicated; -- opposed to go.
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            Look, who comes yonder?               --Shak.
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            I did not come to curse thee.         --Tennyson.
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   2. To complete a movement toward a place; to arrive.
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            When we came to Rome.                 --Acts xxviii.
                                                  16.
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            Lately come from Italy.               --Acts xviii.
                                                  2.
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   3. To approach or arrive, as if by a journey or from a
      distance. "Thy kingdom come." --Matt. vi. 10.
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            The hour is coming, and now is.       --John. v. 25.
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            So quick bright things come to confusion. --Shak.
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   4. To approach or arrive, as the result of a cause, or of the
      act of another.
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            From whence come wars?                --James iv. 1.
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            Both riches and honor come of thee !  --1 Chron.
                                                  xxix. 12.
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   5. To arrive in sight; to be manifest; to appear.
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            Then butter does refuse to come.      --Hudibras.
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   6. To get to be, as the result of change or progress; -- with
      a predicate; as, to come untied.
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            How come you thus estranged?          --Shak.
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            How come her eyes so bright?          --Shak.
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   Note: Am come, is come, etc., are frequently used instead of
         have come, has come, etc., esp. in poetry. The verb to
         be gives a clearer adjectival significance to the
         participle as expressing a state or condition of the
         subject, while the auxiliary have expresses simply the
         completion of the action signified by the verb.
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               Think not that I am come to destroy. --Matt. v.
                                                  17.
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               We are come off like Romans.       --Shak.
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               The melancholy days are come, the saddest of the
               year.                              --Bryant.
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   Note: Come may properly be used (instead of go) in speaking
         of a movement hence, or away, when there is reference
         to an approach to the person addressed; as, I shall
         come home next week; he will come to your house to-day.
         It is used with other verbs almost as an auxiliary,
         indicative of approach to the action or state expressed
         by the verb; as, how came you to do it? Come is used
         colloquially, with reference to a definite future time
         approaching, without an auxiliary; as, it will be two
         years, come next Christmas; i. e., when Christmas shall
         come.
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               They were cried
               In meeting, come next Sunday.      --Lowell.
         Come, in the imperative, is used to excite attention,
         or to invite to motion or joint action; come, let us
         go. "This is the heir; come, let us kill him." --Matt.
         xxi. 38. When repeated, it sometimes expresses haste,
         or impatience, and sometimes rebuke. "Come, come, no
         time for lamentation now." --Milton.
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   {To come}, yet to arrive, future. "In times to come."
      --Dryden. "There's pippins and cheese to come." --Shak.

   {To come about}.
      (a) To come to pass; to arrive; to happen; to result; as,
          how did these things come about?
      (b) To change; to come round; as, the ship comes about.
          "The wind is come about." --Shak.
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                On better thoughts, and my urged reasons,
                They are come about, and won to the true side.
                                                  --B. Jonson.

   {To come abroad}.
      (a) To move or be away from one's home or country. "Am
          come abroad to see the world." --Shak.
      (b) To become public or known. [Obs.] "Neither was
          anything kept secret, but that it should come abroad."
          --Mark. iv. 22.

   {To come across}, to meet; to find, esp. by chance or
      suddenly. "We come across more than one incidental mention
      of those wars." --E. A. Freeman. "Wagner's was certainly
      one of the strongest and most independent natures I ever
      came across." --H. R. Haweis.

   {To come after}.
      (a) To follow.
      (b) To come to take or to obtain; as, to come after a
          book.

   {To come again}, to return. "His spirit came again and he
      revived." --Judges. xv. 19. - 

   {To come and go}.
      (a) To appear and disappear; to change; to alternate. "The
          color of the king doth come and go." --Shak.
      (b) (Mech.) To play backward and forward.

   {To come at}.
      (a) To reach; to arrive within reach of; to gain; as, to
          come at a true knowledge of ourselves.
      (b) To come toward; to attack; as, he came at me with
          fury.

   {To come away}, to part or depart.

   {To come between}, to intervene; to separate; hence, to cause
      estrangement.

   {To come by}.
      (a) To obtain, gain, acquire. "Examine how you came by all
          your state." --Dryden.
      (b) To pass near or by way of.

   {To come down}.
      (a) To descend.
      (b) To be humbled.

   {To come down upon}, to call to account, to reprimand.
      [Colloq.] --Dickens.

   {To come home}.
      (a) To return to one's house or family.
      (b) To come close; to press closely; to touch the
          feelings, interest, or reason.
      (c) (Naut.) To be loosened from the ground; -- said of an
          anchor.

   {To come in}.
      (a) To enter, as a town, house, etc. "The thief cometh
          in." --Hos. vii. 1.
      (b) To arrive; as, when my ship comes in.
      (c) To assume official station or duties; as, when Lincoln
          came in.
      (d) To comply; to yield; to surrender. "We need not fear
          his coming in" --Massinger.
      (e) To be brought into use. "Silken garments did not come
          in till late." --Arbuthnot.
      (f) To be added or inserted; to be or become a part of.
      (g) To accrue as gain from any business or investment.
      (h) To mature and yield a harvest; as, the crops come in
          well.
      (i) To have sexual intercourse; -- with to or unto. --Gen.
          xxxviii. 16.
      (j) To have young; to bring forth; as, the cow will come
          in next May. [U. S.]

   {To come in for}, to claim or receive. "The rest came in for
      subsidies." --Swift.

   {To come into}, to join with; to take part in; to agree to;
      to comply with; as, to come into a party or scheme.

   {To come it over}, to hoodwink; to get the advantage of.
      [Colloq.]

   {To come near} or {To come nigh}, to approach in place or
      quality; to be equal to. "Nothing ancient or modern seems
      to come near it." --Sir W. Temple.

   {To come of}.
      (a) To descend or spring from. "Of Priam's royal race my
          mother came." --Dryden.
      (b) To result or follow from. "This comes of judging by
          the eye." --L'Estrange.

   {To come off}.
      (a) To depart or pass off from.
      (b) To get free; to get away; to escape.
      (c) To be carried through; to pass off; as, it came off
          well.
      (d) To acquit one's self; to issue from (a contest, etc.);
          as, he came off with honor; hence, substantively, a
          come-off, an escape; an excuse; an evasion. [Colloq.]
      (e) To pay over; to give. [Obs.]
      (f) To take place; to happen; as, when does the race come
          off?
      (g) To be or become after some delay; as, the weather came
          off very fine.
      (h) To slip off or be taken off, as a garment; to
          separate.
      (i) To hurry away; to get through. --Chaucer.

   {To come off by}, to suffer. [Obs.] "To come off by the
      worst." --Calamy.

   {To come off from}, to leave. "To come off from these grave
      disquisitions." --Felton.

   {To come on}.
      (a) To advance; to make progress; to thrive.
      (b) To move forward; to approach; to supervene.

   {To come out}.
      (a) To pass out or depart, as from a country, room,
          company, etc. "They shall come out with great
          substance." --Gen. xv. 14.
      (b) To become public; to appear; to be published. "It is
          indeed come out at last." --Bp. Stillingfleet.
      (c) To end; to result; to turn out; as, how will this
          affair come out? he has come out well at last.
      (d) To be introduced into society; as, she came out two
          seasons ago.
      (e) To appear; to show itself; as, the sun came out.
      (f) To take sides; to announce a position publicly; as, he
          came out against the tariff.
      (g) To publicly admit oneself to be homosexual.

   {To come out with}, to give publicity to; to disclose.

   {To come over}.
      (a) To pass from one side or place to another.
          "Perpetually teasing their friends to come over to
          them." --Addison.
      (b) To rise and pass over, in distillation.

   {To come over to}, to join.

   {To come round}.
      (a) To recur in regular course.
      (b) To recover. [Colloq.]
      (c) To change, as the wind.
      (d) To relent. --J. H. Newman.
      (e) To circumvent; to wheedle. [Colloq.]

   {To come short}, to be deficient; to fail of attaining. "All
      have sinned and come short of the glory of God." --Rom.
      iii. 23.

   {To come to}.
      (a) To consent or yield. --Swift.
      (b) (Naut.) (with the accent on to) To luff; to bring the
          ship's head nearer the wind; to anchor.
      (c) (with the accent on to) To recover, as from a swoon.
      (d) To arrive at; to reach.
      (e) To amount to; as, the taxes come to a large sum.
      (f) To fall to; to be received by, as an inheritance.
          --Shak.

   {To come to blows}. See under {Blow}.

   {To come to grief}. See under {Grief}.

   {To come to a head}.
      (a) To suppurate, as a boil.
      (b) To mature; to culminate; as a plot.

   {To come to one's self}, to recover one's senses.

   {To come to pass}, to happen; to fall out.

   {To come to the scratch}.
      (a) (Prize Fighting) To step up to the scratch or mark
          made in the ring to be toed by the combatants in
          beginning a contest; hence:
      (b) To meet an antagonist or a difficulty bravely.
          [Colloq.]

   {To come to time}.
      (a) (Prize Fighting) To come forward in order to resume
          the contest when the interval allowed for rest is over
          and "time" is called; hence:
      (b) To keep an appointment; to meet expectations.
          [Colloq.]

   {To come together}.
      (a) To meet for business, worship, etc.; to assemble.
          --Acts i. 6.
      (b) To live together as man and wife. --Matt. i. 18.

   {To come true}, to happen as predicted or expected.

   {To come under}, to belong to, as an individual to a class.
      

   {To come up}
      (a) to ascend; to rise.
      (b) To be brought up; to arise, as a question.
      (c) To spring; to shoot or rise above the earth, as a
          plant.
      (d) To come into use, as a fashion.

   {To come up the capstan} (Naut.), to turn it the contrary
      way, so as to slacken the rope about it.

   {To come up the tackle fall} (Naut.), to slacken the tackle
      gently. --Totten.

   {To come up to}, to rise to; to equal.

   {To come up with}, to overtake or reach by pursuit.

   {To come upon}.
      (a) To befall.
      (b) To attack or invade.
      (c) To have a claim upon; to become dependent upon for
          support; as, to come upon the town.
      (d) To light or chance upon; to find; as, to come upon hid
          treasure.
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from The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48
By \By\ (b[imac]), prep. [OE. bi, AS. b[imac], big, near to, by,
   of, from, after, according to; akin to OS. & OFries. bi, be,
   D. bij, OHG. b[imac], G. bei, Goth. bi, and perh. Gr. 'amfi`.
   E. prefix be- is orig. the same word. [root]203. See pref.
   {Be-}.]
   1. In the neighborhood of; near or next to; not far from;
      close to; along with; as, come and sit by me.
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            By foundation or by shady rivulet
            He sought them both.                  --Milton.
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   2. On; along; in traversing. Compare 5.
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            Long labors both by sea and land he bore. --Dryden.
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            By land, by water, they renew the charge. --Pope.
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   3. Near to, while passing; hence, from one to the other side
      of; past; as, to go by a church.
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   4. Used in specifying adjacent dimensions; as, a cabin twenty
      feet by forty.
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   5. Against. [Obs.] --Tyndale [1. Cor. iv. 4].
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   6. With, as means, way, process, etc.; through means of; with
      aid of; through; through the act or agency of; as, a city
      is destroyed by fire; profit is made by commerce; to take
      by force.
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   Note: To the meaning of by, as denoting means or agency,
         belong, more or less closely, most of the following
         uses of the word:
      (a) It points out the author and producer; as, "Waverley",
          a novel by Sir W.Scott; a statue by Canova; a sonata
          by Beethoven.
      (b) In an oath or adjuration, it indicates the being or
          thing appealed to as sanction; as, I affirm to you by
          all that is sacred; he swears by his faith as a
          Christian; no, by Heaven.
      (c) According to; by direction, authority, or example of;
          after; -- in such phrases as, it appears by his
          account; ten o'clock by my watch; to live by rule; a
          model to build by.
      (d) At the rate of; according to the ratio or proportion
          of; in the measure or quantity of; as, to sell cloth
          by the yard, milk by the quart, eggs by the dozen,
          meat by the pound; to board by the year.
      (e) In comparison, it denotes the measure of excess or
          deficiency; when anything is increased or diminished,
          it indicates the measure of increase or diminution;
          as, larger by a half; older by five years; to lessen
          by a third.
      (f) It expresses continuance or duration; during the
          course of; within the period of; as, by day, by night.
      (g) As soon as; not later than; near or at; -- used in
          expressions of time; as, by this time the sun had
          risen; he will be here by two o'clock.
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   Note: In boxing the compass, by indicates a pint nearer to,
         or towards, the next cardinal point; as, north by east,
         i.e., a point towards the east from the north;
         northeast by east, i.e., on point nearer the east than
         northeast is.
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   Note: With is used instead of by before the instrument with
         which anything is done; as, to beat one with a stick;
         the board was fastened by the carpenter with nails. But
         there are many words which may be regarded as means or
         processes, or, figuratively, as instruments; and
         whether with or by shall be used with them is a matter
         of arbitrary, and often, of unsettled usage; as, to a
         reduce a town by famine; to consume stubble with fire;
         he gained his purpose by flattery; he entertained them
         with a story; he distressed us with or by a recital of
         his sufferings. see {With}.
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   {By all means}, most assuredly; without fail; certainly.

   {By and by}.
      (a) Close together (of place). [Obs.] "Two yonge knightes
          liggyng [lying] by and by." --Chaucer.
      (b) Immediately; at once. [Obs.] "When . . . persecution
          ariseth because of the word, by and by he is
          offended." --Matt. xiii. 21.
      (c) Presently; pretty soon; before long.

   Note: In this phrase, by seems to be used in the sense of
         nearness in time, and to be repeated for the sake of
         emphasis, and thus to be equivalent to "soon, and
         soon," that is instantly; hence, -- less emphatically,
         -- pretty soon, presently.

   {By one's self}, with only one's self near; alone; solitary.

   {By the bye}. See under {Bye}.

   {By the head} (Naut.), having the bows lower than the stern;
      -- said of a vessel when her head is lower in the water
      than her stern. If her stern is lower, she is by the
      stern.

   {By the lee}, the situation of a vessel, going free, when she
      has fallen off so much as to bring the wind round her
      stern, and to take her sails aback on the other side.

   {By the run}, to let go by the run, to let go altogether,
      instead of slacking off.

   {By the way}, by the bye; -- used to introduce an incidental
      or secondary remark or subject. 

   {Day by day}, {One by one}, {Piece by piece}, etc., each day,
      each one, each piece, etc., by itself singly or
      separately; each severally.

   {To come by}, to get possession of; to obtain.

   {To do by}, to treat, to behave toward.

   {To set by}, to value, to esteem.

   {To stand by}, to aid, to support.
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   Note: The common phrase good-by is equivalent to farewell,
         and would be better written good-bye, as it is a
         corruption of God be with you (b'w'ye).
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