Adjacent Words

Become definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

BECOME, v.i. becum'. pret. became, pp. become.
1. To pass from one state to another; to enter into some state or condition, by a change from another state or condition, or by assuming or receiving new properties or qualities, additional matter, or a new character; as, a cion becomes a tree.
The Lord God breathed into his nostrils the breath of like and man became a living soul.
To the Jew, I became a Jew.
2. To become of, usually with what preceding; to be the fate of; to be the end of; to be the final or subsequent condition; as, what will become of our commerce? what will become of us?
In the present tense, it applies to place as well as condition. What has become of my friend? that is, where is he? as well as, what is his condition? Where is he become? used by Shakespeare and Spenser, is obsolete; but this is the sense in Saxon, where has he fallen?
BECOME, v.t. In general, to suit or be suitable; to be congruous; to befit; to accord with, in character or circumstances; to be worthy of, decent or proper. It is used in the same sense applied to persons or things.
If I become not a cart as well as another man.
This use of the word however is less frequent, the verb usually expressing the suitableness of things, to persons or to other things; as, a robe becomes a prince.
It becomes not a cart as well as another man.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

v
1: enter or assume a certain state or condition; "He became annoyed when he heard the bad news"; "It must be getting more serious"; "her face went red with anger"; "She went into ecstasy"; "Get going!" [syn: become, go, get]
2: undergo a change or development; "The water turned into ice"; "Her former friend became her worst enemy"; "He turned traitor" [syn: become, turn]
3: come into existence; "What becomes has duration"
4: enhance the appearance of; "Mourning becomes Electra"; "This behavior doesn't suit you!" [syn: become, suit]

Merriam Webster's

verb (became; -come; -coming) Etymology: Middle English, to come to, become, from Old English becuman, from be- + cuman to come Date: before 12th century intransitive verb 1. a. to come into existence b. to come to be <become sick> 2. to undergo change or development transitive verb to be suitable to <seriousness becoming the occasion>; especially to be becoming to <her clothes become her>

Oxford Reference Dictionary

v. (past became; past part. become) 1 intr. (foll. by compl.) begin to be (became president; will become famous). 2 tr. a look well on; suit (blue becomes him). b befit (it ill becomes you to complain). 3 intr. (as becoming adj.) a flattering the appearance. b suitable; decorous. Phrases and idioms: become of happen to (what will become of me?). Derivatives: becomingly adj. becomingness n. Etymology: OE becuman f. Gmc: cf. BE-, COME

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Become Be*come", v. i. [imp. Became; p. p. Become; p. pr. & vb. n. Becoming.] [OE. bicumen, becumen, AS. becuman to come to, to happen; akin to D. bekomen, OHG.a piqu["e]man, Goth. biquiman to come upon, G. bekommen to get, suit. See Be-, and Come.] 1. To pass from one state to another; to enter into some state or condition, by a change from another state, or by assuming or receiving new properties or qualities, additional matter, or a new character. The Lord God . . . breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul. --Gen. ii. 7. That error now which is become my crime. --Milton. 2. To come; to get. [Obs.] But, madam, where is Warwick then become! --Shak. To become of, to be the present state or place of; to be the fate of; to be the end of; to be the final or subsequent condition of. What is then become of so huge a multitude? --Sir W. Raleigh.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Become Be*come", v. i. [imp. Became; p. p. Become; p. pr. & vb. n. Becoming.] [OE. bicumen, becumen, AS. becuman to come to, to happen; akin to D. bekomen, OHG.a piqu["e]man, Goth. biquiman to come upon, G. bekommen to get, suit. See Be-, and Come.] 1. To pass from one state to another; to enter into some state or condition, by a change from another state, or by assuming or receiving new properties or qualities, additional matter, or a new character. The Lord God . . . breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul. --Gen. ii. 7. That error now which is become my crime. --Milton. 2. To come; to get. [Obs.] But, madam, where is Warwick then become! --Shak. To become of, to be the present state or place of; to be the fate of; to be the end of; to be the final or subsequent condition of. What is then become of so huge a multitude? --Sir W. Raleigh.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Become Be*come", v. t. To suit or be suitable to; to be congruous with; to befit; to accord with, in character or circumstances; to be worthy of, or proper for; to cause to appear well; -- said of persons and things. It becomes me so to speak of so excellent a poet. --Dryden. I have known persons so anxious to have their dress become them, as to convert it, at length, into their proper self, and thus actually to become the dress. --Coleridge.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

(becomes, becoming, became) Frequency: The word is one of the 700 most common words in English. Note: The form 'become' is used in the present tense and is the past participle. 1. If someone or something becomes a particular thing, they start to change and develop into that thing, or start to develop the characteristics mentioned. I first became interested in Islam while I was doing my nursing training... As she reached the age of thirty she became convinced she would remain single all her life... After leaving school, he became a professional footballer... V-LINK: V adj, V -ed, V n 2. If something becomes someone, it makes them look attractive or it seems right for them. Don't be crude tonight, Bernard, it doesn't become you. = suit VERB: no passive, no cont, V n 3. If you wonder what has become of someone or something, you wonder where they are and what has happened to them. She thought constantly about her family; she might never know what had become of them... PHRASE: V inflects

International Standard Bible Encyclopedia

be-kum':

(1) Greek ginomai, used in New Testament for a change of state, corresponding to Hebrew hayah of Old Testament. Compare Mt 18:3 with De 27:9.

(2) For what is fitting, suitable, proper, in New Testament: "prepei" (Mt 3:15; Eph 5:3; 1Ti 2:10); in Old Testament, na'awah, na'ah, Ps 93:5: "Holiness becometh thy house." in this sense, the adverb "becomingly" must be interpreted: "Walk becomingly toward them that are without" (1Th 4:12), i.e. in a way that is consistent with your profession.

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

I. v. n. Get, grow, turn to, change to, be changed to, be converted into, be turned into, be transformed into, get to be, come to be. II. v. a. Suit, befit, adorn, set off, be suitable to, be proper for, be appropriate to.

Moby Thesaurus

adorn, agree with, alter into, arise, assimilate to, be born, be bound, be changed, be converted into, be obligated, be obliged, become of, befit, behoove, beseem, break out, bring to, burst forth, change, change into, change over, come, come forth, come of, come out, come over, come round to, come to be, convert, crop up, do over, enhance, erupt, evolve into, fall into, fit, get, get to be, go, go with, grace, grow, have origin, irrupt, issue, issue forth, lapse into, make, make over, melt into, mount, naturalize, open into, originate, owe it to, pass into, reconvert, reduce to, render, resolve into, reverse, ripen into, rise, run, run into, settle into, shift, shift into, soar, spring up, suit, switch, switch over, take birth, take rise, transform, turn, turn back, turn into, turn to, wax