come to one's senses
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Return to thinking or behaving sensibly and reasonably; recover consciousness. For example, I wish he'd come to his senses and stop playing around. This term employs senses in the sense of “normal or sane mental faculties,” and in the earliest recorded use (1637) it meant “recover from a swoon.” Its broader present-day meaning dates from the mid-1800s. The related bring someone to his or her senses was used by John Gay in his Beggars' Opera (1727). Also see take leave (of one's senses).
QUIZZES
QUIZ YOURSELF ON PARENTHESES AND BRACKETS APLENTY!
Set some time apart to test your bracket symbol knowledge, and see if you can keep your parentheses, squares, curlies, and angles all straight!
Question 1 of 7
Let’s start with some etymology: What are the origins of the typographical word “bracket”?
First appeared around 1750, and is related to the French word “braguette” for the name of codpiece armor.
First appeared in 1610, based on the French word “baguette” for the long loaf of bread.
First appeared in 1555, and is related to the French word “raquette” for a netted bat.
TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT Words nearby come to one's senses
come to life, come to light, come to mind, come to no good, come to nothing, come to one's senses, come to pass, come to terms, come to that, come to the point, come to the same thing
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.