come by

phraseB22 meaningsNot compared — the two pools are counted one word at a time, so a phrase has no score

To come by something is to obtain it, often by luck. It arrived and you did not have to hunt for it.

It nearly always appears in a comment about difficulty, since saying that something is hard to come by means it is scarce, and that is the commonest use of the phrase by a long way. It takes a direct object. There is a second and quite separate sense meaning to visit briefly, so asking somebody to come by later is an invitation.

Definitions of come by

1phrasecome byTo obtain or acquire something.B2
“Good staff are hard to come by just now.”
2phraseshortTo make a short visit.C1
“Do come by if you are passing.”

Practised in A Man Called Ove, A Song of Ice and Fire

First appears in chapter 7 of A Man Called Ove.

Practise this word

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come by

phraseB22 meaningsNot compared — the two pools are counted one word at a time, so a phrase has no score

To come by something is to obtain it, often by luck. It arrived and you did not have to hunt for it.

Definitions of come by

1phrasecome byTo obtain or acquire something.B2
“Good staff are hard to come by just now.”
2phraseshortTo make a short visit.C1
“Do come by if you are passing.”

Practised in A Man Called Ove, A Song of Ice and Fire

First appears in chapter 7 of A Man Called Ove.

Practise this word