To come across
Example: She comes across useful information by chance
Definition
"To come across" means to find or encounter something or someone unexpectedly or by chance, often without actively searching. For example, in the phrase 'She comes across useful information by chance,' it indicates discovering useful information incidentally.
Etymology
The phrase "to come across" originates from the early 19th century and is a combination of 'come,' meaning to move toward or arrive, and 'across,' implying movement from one side to another. It originally described physically crossing a space but evolved to mean encountering something unexpectedly. Did you know? Its use in the sense of 'discovering by chance' became popular with the rise of everyday conversational English.
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"To come across" appears in the Vocaplus list "English - General - (B1) - set 5", containing 113 commonly used words.
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