to come on
365
2.5
- phrasal verb
- /kʌm ɑn/
:
encenderse
- As the sun sets, the streetlights come on to light up the roads.
- lights come on
And then this song came on, which it's never on.
- And then this song came on, which it's never on.
- Our peripherals should come on, baby, start working.
- But when NFL Network was coming on, what years was that again?
- Like the light comes on in the dash of your car.
Examples
-
It just came on all by itself.
-
Soon as the lights came on.
-
You know, the news does come on your phone now, it's a new thing.
-
The Commission can still carry on current business until the new Commission comes on board in September.
Academic text (1999) -
So the radio comes on when the alarm goes off.
-
When the signal comes on, what's that about?
-
When the red light comes on, then there is a lot of verification going on.
Academic text (1997) -
A double row of white landing lights came on and rippled the length of the ship.
Fiction book (1991) -
Even as newer, cleaner trucks come on the market, older rigs will continue hauling for years.
Academic text (2006) -
The lights always come on automatically when it gets dark outside.
Synonyms
550
1.0
To make a machine or device start working
262
3.5
To start working after being switched on
57
1.1
Start working, like lights or an alarm
38
3.0
To make a machine or system begin to work
32
1.6
To make a device like a light start working by pressing a button or moving a switch
24
3.7
To become available to use, for example a website or service
Antonyms
How Active
Surface Forms
Morphology
The urging sense (e.g., 'Come on, let’s go') is partly derivable from 'come' (move toward) so learners may infer a request to move or hurry, but the exclamatory uses expressing disbelief or irritation ('Oh, come on!') are idiomatic and not directly predictable from the constituents. Because there is a clear link in some uses but other senses are metaphorical and pragmatic, the expression is best classified as partially transparent.
Etymology
Come on comes from the simple image of something beginning to work: a light or machine suddenly comes on as if it arrives and starts doing its job. That's why it means 'to start operating'.