to come by

Examples

• All

• Since apartments are so hard to come by these days, I figured I better take the first place to come along.

  Stuck on You! (1982)

• My understanding is that parts are somewhat hard to come by and they're not reliable.

• But I know a lot of great things have come by just following my feelings on it.

  Evan Carmichael

• Good jobs are hard to come by, and you know this is a good job.

  Academic text (1992)

• I had a young Yale freshman come by asking me to donate here in New Haven.

• That reflex of fear, guilt, shame, we come by it honestly, right?

  Rich Roll

• Exact numbers are hard to come by because Western censuses rarely ask respondents about their faith.

  Academic text (2005)

• If you don't stay on top of your stuff, somebody else will come by and gobble you up.

• Thelma asked me to come by, check the heart-pacing machine.

  The Bone Collector (1999)

• It's not easy to come by a reliable source of information these days.

Synonyms

O

to obtain

vsto come by

619 2.6

To get something by asking or working for it

often happens by accident or with difficulty rather than by planned effort

C

to come across

vsto come by

244 2.6

To find something or someone by chance

involves actually acquiring something often with difficulty or by chance

C

to come into

vsto come by

105 3.9

To receive money or property unexpectedly, often after someone dies

is more about actively acquiring with difficulty or by accident

G

to get one's hands on

vsto come by

77 4.1

To obtain something that is hard to find or buy

often occurs by chance rather than by effort

C

to come upon

vsto come by

50 2.2

To find something or someone by chance

involves actually acquiring something often with difficulty or by chance

Antonyms

L

to lose

∞ 1.1

Fail to understand or follow what someone says

How Difficult

to procure

45 6.8

to obtain

619 2.6

to come by

127 3.2

to find

∞ 1.0

to get

∞ 1.0

Surface Forms

Morphology

Etymology