become

Meanings

1. To start to be something.
2. To change into something.
3. To suit, or to look good on someone.

Example sentences

• "The little tadpole will become a frog."

  Level A2, Meaning 2

• "She wants to become a doctor."

  Level A2, Meaning 1

• "The weather became colder at night."

  Level A2, Meaning 1

• "That blue dress becomes you."

  Level C1, Meaning 3

Synonyms and antonyms

Look-alikes and common mistakes

• turn into : Turn into is the informal way to say become, often for a change in form.
• get : Get is the casual word, as in get tired. Become is more formal.

Word family and forms

Forms: becomes, became, becoming

Word partners

Words and phrases that often go with "become".

• become a teacher
• become famous
• become friends
• become clear
• become aware of
• what has become of

Idioms and phrases

become of

To happen to someone, especially when you do not know where they are.

"Whatever became of your old friend?"

Origin

Become comes from Old English becuman, which meant to come about or to happen. It is built from be- and come, and it is the same in Dutch bekomen and German bekommen. English has had the word since before the year 900.

Checked against: Wiktionary, the free dictionary, Dictionary.com.

How to remember it

Become is be plus come. To become is to come to be something new.

Test yourself

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