come by

verb

came by; come by; coming by; comes by

transitive verb

: to get possession of : acquire

a good job is hard to come by

intransitive verb

: to make a visit

came by after dinner

Synonyms

• call
• come over
• drop by
• drop in
• pop (in)
• run (over)
• run in
• step in
• stop (by or in)
• visit

Examples of come by in a Sentence

come by after work and I'll give you some clothes for the rummage sale

a literary award like that isn't easy to come by

Recent Examples on the Web

At one point during the interview, Ahmad’s son Walid came by. —Ivana Kottasová, CNN, 31 Jan. 2025

After police were notified, the individual allegedly asked the elderly man for another $20,000 and told him a courier would come by to pick it up in the afternoon hours on Thursday, according to police. —Justin Muszynski, Hartford Courant, 31 Jan. 2025

While the Giants are rooted in tradition and respect, winning has been hard to come by in recent seasons. —Scott Thompson, Fox News, 31 Jan. 2025

The total number of deportations is harder to come by. —Hannah Parry, Newsweek, 28 Jan. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense

Kids Definition

come by

verb

1

: to make a visit

come by after dinner

2

: acquire

good help is hard to come by