phrasal verb · neutral

come by

/kʌm baɪ/COME·by

speakingtask2

to obtain something (often not easy); to visit briefly

Examples

Authentic sources are hard to come by for this topic.

If you're in my area, come by and say hello.

I just came by to drop off the report.

Band 8 sentence

Reliable statistical data for rural areas is notoriously hard to come by, which complicates policy-making.

Collocations

  • hard to come by
  • come by chance

Word family

come by verbcame by verb (past)

Common mistakes

Information is hard to come.Information is hard to come by.

I will come by you tomorrow.I will come by your place tomorrow.

Say it for a higher band

5get6find7+come by

Synonyms

obtain

drop by

Easily confused

come across

I came across an old friend while tidying my emails.

Related words

Learn this word with the rest of its set, and get reminded at the right time.

In come …

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