become
Americanverb (used without object)
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becomes,
present (3rd person singular)
-
became,
past
-
become,
past participle
-
becoming
present participle
-
to come, change, or grow to be (as specified).
He became tired.
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to come into being.
verb (used with object)
-
becomes,
present (3rd person singular)
-
became,
past
-
become,
past participle
-
becoming
present participle
-
to be attractive on; befit in appearance; look well on.
That gown becomes you.
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to be suitable or necessary to the dignity, situation, or responsibility of.
conduct that becomes an officer.
idioms
verb
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(copula) to come to be; develop or grow into
he became a monster
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(foll by of; usually used in a question) to fall to or be the lot (of); happen (to)
what became of him?
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(tr) (of clothes, etc) to enhance the appearance of (someone); suit
that dress becomes you
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(tr) to be appropriate; befit
it ill becomes you to complain
Other Word Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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becomesimple
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becomessimple
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have becomeperfect
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has becomeperfect
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am becomingprogressive
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are becomingprogressive
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is becomingprogressive
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have been becomingperfect progressive
-
has been becomingperfect progressive
Past
-
becamesimple
-
had becomeperfect
-
was becomingprogressive
-
were becomingprogressive
-
had been becomingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of become
First recorded before 900; Middle English becumen, Old English becuman “to come about, happen”; cognate with Dutch bekomen, German bekommen, Gothic biqiman. See be-, come
Explanation
To become is to evolve, change into, or emerge as something. A fertilized egg will hatch and the tiny chick will become a full-grown chicken. When you become angrier and angrier watching the TV news, you begin to feel a certain way. Likewise, when Pinocchio the wooden puppet becomes a real boy in the fairy tale, he changes from toy to human. The word become can also mean "learn how to be" or "be qualified for," as when you dream that some day you'll become an astronaut. The Old English becuman has these meanings, and also "meet with" or "arrive."
Vocabulary lists containing become
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.
See Examples For:
As both retail and institutional investors increasingly embrace leverage while favoring more short-term trading, blowups like these will likely become more frequent, market strategists told MarketWatch.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 30, 2026
Miriam Gottfried explains how this once-quiet corner of life insurance has become increasingly popular.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 30, 2026
Turner played with Donald as a rookie in 2023 and soaked up as much as he could from the eight-time All-Pro before ascending to become a team leader.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 30, 2026
“The thing that I got right, that I loved for the longest time and now has almost become the bane of my existence, is creating relatable comics,” he told us.
From Salon ● Aug. 30, 2026
They had become almost like family to us.
From "An Elephant in the Garden" by Michael Morpurgo
But there is always a danger that deep thinking becomes overthinking, something Anthony Joshua has been accused of repeatedly during the latter stages of his career.
From BBC ● Aug. 30, 2026
The source of his bewildering restraint becomes a mystery concealed on every page.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 28, 2026
If the ground becomes too cold or too dry, soil organisms become far less active.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 28, 2026
Kelly’s version, however, becomes a philosophical infinity mirror.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 28, 2026
Father said that when I am angry I become full of pent-up emotion, the same way the boiler on a locomotive becomes full of steam.
From "The (Mostly) True Story of Cleopatra's Needle" by Dan Gutman
As employees became more productive with AI tools, the thinking went, enterprises would trim their staffs and purchase fewer software subscriptions, also known as “seats.”
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 30, 2026
Unlike other countries, we were literally not “a people” until we became a nation.
From Salon ● Aug. 30, 2026
Ford, worth about $3.2 billion according to Forbes, became a prominent socialite and mainstay of the Texas business community.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 30, 2026
Kushner Cos. built and acquired apartments in multiple states, while Charles became a philanthropist and major Democratic Party donor.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 30, 2026
I became more and more irritated with him, and with Mutti too.
From "An Elephant in the Garden" by Michael Morpurgo
Spexard says take-home assignments became so riddled with AI slop that they’re becoming obsolete and live assignments are now the way to go.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 30, 2026
Although the strange oppressiveness of collective adulation isn’t new, it is becoming far more ubiquitous – and insidious – in the attention economy.
From Salon ● Aug. 30, 2026
It has been quite the journey from kicking a ball about as a schoolboy on the playing fields of Vaulx-en-Velin - situated to the east of Lyon - to becoming a superstar worth nine figures.
From BBC ● Aug. 30, 2026
He finished with seven catches for 118 yards and a touchdown, becoming the first Power Four freshman receiver to meet those marks in a debut since Purdue’s Rondale Moore in 2018.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 29, 2026
Or why it feels like I’m becoming someone else.
From "Kwame Crashes the Underworld" by Craig Kofi Farmer
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
