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to come out

to come out

106 2.4
To finish in a particular way in a competition or event
  • phrasal verb
  • /kʌm aʊt/
translation icon : quedar (en)
  • He was the best player to ever come out of these parts, that's for sure.
  • come out on top
  • come out ahead

I appreciate you telling us saying that we might come out in the semi finals.

Examples

  • Israel was born in war, but managed to come out on top.

    Academic text (2016)
  • Who will come out on top and who will come out bruised?

  • So it all comes out very, very well.

  • And then the end result is they come out looking like this.

  • OK, so let's see how the numbers come out on this.

  • He's one of the best running backs to come out of Southern California.

  • But when the count's done, the numbers will tell who's come out in front.

    Fiction book (2002)
  • I try my utmost to defend myself, but he comes out victorious every time.

    Fiction book (1994)
  • Biggs is puffed up, confident he'll come out of this a big hero.

    Fiction book (1992)
  • In the final race, she was thrilled to see her team come out victorious.

Synonyms

to come in
vsto come out
232 3.3

To finish in a particular position in a race or contest, for example second

is broader, covering any result or position not only ordinal ranks
to place
vsto come out
139 3.8

To finish a race or competition in a particular position

is about results more generally rather than only finishing positions
to come in third
vsto come out
11 1.9

To finish third in a race or contest

is general and covers any result or position, not only that specific one

Antonyms

1.0

Fail to win a game or contest

How High

to win
1.0
to come out
106 2.4
to place
139 3.8

Surface Forms

come out infinitive
came out past
come out past participle
coming out present participle
comes out third person singular

Morphology

come + out

The sense 'to become detached or emerge' follows directly from combining 'come' (to move or appear) with the particle 'out' (to the outside, emergence or removal); the particle adds the idea of emerging or being removed, so the overall meaning is compositionally predictable. This motion/particle pattern is common in English (and mirrored in many other languages), so a B1 learner who knows both constituents will typically infer the meaning.

Etymology

Come out in competitions comes from the idea of a final result 'coming out' after everything is counted, like a name coming out as the winner. So come out means 'to end up' with a particular result.