come about

British  

verb

1. to take place; happen

2. nautical to change tacks

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come about Idioms  

1. Also, come to pass . Happen, take place, as in How did this quarrel come about? or When did this new development come to pass? Shakespeare used the first term, first recorded in 1315, in Hamlet (5:2): “How these things came about.” The variant, dating from the late 1400s, appears often in the Bible, as in, “And it came to pass ... that there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus” (Luke 2:1).

2. Also, go about . In sailing, to change tack (direction), as in It's important to duck under the boom when we come about . [Mid-1500s]

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Example Sentences

Chinese exports to 20 Japanese companies will require a certification process, Beijing announced, with details to come about what that process is.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 24, 2026

“A lot of fights come about because you just assume priorities are the same,” Joy says.

From MarketWatch • Jan. 14, 2026

So many cartoons depict great ideas using light bulbs that we’ve forgotten many of the greatest ideas come about from long deliberation and careful winnowing.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 31, 2025

Switzerland's government, known as the Federal Council, told AFP the meeting had come about through "a private initiative".

From Barron's • Nov. 5, 2025

How does it come about that the face of a warrior is incised on the carapace of a crab?

From "Cosmos" by Carl Sagan