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to come to one's senses

to come to one's senses

46 4.4
Start thinking and acting in a sensible way again after being foolish or upset
  • idiom
  • /kʌm tu wʌnz ˈsɛnsɪz/
  • Informal
translation icon : entrar en razón
  • She'll come to her senses.

Examples

  • I do hope that they will come to their senses and stop giving public scandal to the whole city.

    Academic text (1998)
  • After a long discussion, he finally came to his senses and agreed to help us.

  • I hope our people come to their senses.

  • That girl's come to her senses.

  • I'm so glad you finally came to your senses.

  • Spend a few days here and you'll come to your senses.

  • Well, glad to see you've come to your senses.

  • I'm so glad you've come to your senses, my love.

  • It just takes some guys longer to come to their senses, that's all.

  • I hoped and prayed every day they would come to their senses and we'd go home to the land.

    Fiction book (2001)

Synonyms

to get one's head straight
vsto come to one's senses
  • Informal
6 7.0

To calm your mind and think clearly

means becoming sensible in actions and judgments rather than only clear thoughts
to get one's head together
vsto come to one's senses
  • Informal
5 7.7

Put your thoughts and feelings in order after a time of confusion

leads to sensible decision making and behavior rather than mere organization
to come down to earth
vsto come to one's senses
1 4.8

Start to think and act in a realistic way after being excited

covers becoming sensible and rational broadly not limited to practical realism
to give one's head a shake
vsto come to one's senses
  • Informal
8.6

Make yourself stop worrying and start thinking clearly

returns more slowly to sensible and rational thinking after confusion

Antonyms

1 6.7

Become very anxious, confused, or upset and act in a way that does not make sense

How Sensible

to come to one's senses
  • Informal
46 4.4

Surface Forms

coming to one's senses present participle
comes to one's senses third person singular
come to one's senses past participle

Morphology

come + to + one + sense

The phrase uses 'come' (arrive) plus 'senses' (sound judgment), so the idea of 'arriving back at one’s judgment' is derivable; however the use of 'senses' to mean 'sanity or sensible thinking' rather than physical senses is non-literal. Because it requires mapping 'senses' to 'judgment' and recognizing 'come to' as 'regain', the meaning is partially predictable but still somewhat idiomatic for a B1 learner.

Etymology

Come to one's senses comes from a simple image: when someone has fainted or been very confused, they come back and their senses return so they can think clearly again. So, to come to one's senses now means 'to start thinking and acting sensibly again'.