become
Americanverb (used without object)
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to come, change, or grow to be (as specified).
He became tired.
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to come into being.
verb (used with object)
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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
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has been becomingperfect progressive
Past
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becamesimple
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had becomeperfect
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was becomingprogressive
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were becomingprogressive
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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.
SKF will hold a 60% majority stake in the venture, which is expected to become operational at the end of 2026.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jul. 2, 2026
Snow Patrol frontman Gary Lightbody has said the band's latest single with Kylie Minogue was "always destined" to become a collaboration after he originally wrote it with the Australian singer in mind.
From BBC • Jul. 2, 2026
Constitution and the 1849 California constitution extended the right to vote only to white men — but the definition of “white” included Mexican Californians who chose to become U.S. citizens.
From Los Angeles Times • Jul. 2, 2026
“You cannot expect Nvidia is going to become a $10 trillion company within two years. It might get to $10 trillion, but it would take some time.”
From MarketWatch • Jul. 2, 2026
I could just pretend that I’d never seen my name written on a Cocoon, and I could stay on track to become the best Glitcher the Academy had ever seen.
From "Glitch" by Laura Martin
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.
