come up
Britishverb
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to come to a place regarded as higher
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(of the sun) to rise
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to begin
a wind came up
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to be regurgitated or vomited
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to present itself or be discussed
that question will come up again
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to begin a term, esp one's first term, at a college or university
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to appear from out of the ground
my beans have come up early this year
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informal to win
have your premium bonds ever come up?
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to be faced with; come into conflict or competition with
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to equal or meet a standard
that just doesn't come up to scratch
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to produce or find
she always comes up with the right answer
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Arise, present itself, as in This question never came up . [Mid-1800s]
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Rise (from a lower place to a higher one) as in We'll leave as soon as the sun comes up . [9th century]
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Also, come up to . Approach, come near, as in He came up and said hello , or The dog came right up to Nora . [Early 1700s]
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Also, come up to . Rise in status or value, be equal to, as in His paintings will never come up to his teacher's , or This officer came up through the ranks . [c. 1600] A variant is , used for someone who has risen in rank, wealth, or status; for example, He has really come up in the world—he now owns a yacht , or I could see at once that she was a woman who would rise in the world . Also see the subsequent idioms beginning with come up .
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The judge gave Walliams until 16:30 GMT on Monday to come up with some proper grounds to challenge his decision.
From BBC ● Nov. 10, 2026
Use the process as a way of having full disclosure about all assets and debts that have not come up yet.
From MarketWatch ● Nov. 9, 2026
Following his appointment, Eisenkot will have 28 days to come up with the 61 votes needed for a government.
From Barron's ● Nov. 7, 2026
There’s just a lot of eye rolling that happens if the conversation ever comes up, and apologies do come up as well.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 5, 2026
“That’s the best explanation you can come up with? A time warp?”
From "Found" by Margaret Peterson Haddix
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
