Become
/bɪˈkʌm/
verbBeginnerVery CommonGeneral
Idiom
Meaning
Question
Definitions
1
To begin to be; to develop into; to grow to be.
/bɪˈkʌm/
verbneutralBeginner
General
To begin to be; to develop into.
The tadpole will become a frog.
💡 Simply: To change into something
More Examples
2
She became a successful writer.
How It's Used
General
"He became a doctor after years of study."
Figurative
"The news became a source of great anxiety."
Idioms & expressions
become of
To happen to; to be the fate of.
"What became of him after he left the company?"
From Old English *becoman, from be- + cuman "to come". The meaning has evolved from simply 'to come to be' to encompass transformation and development.
In older texts, 'become' was more frequently used in constructions like 'it became me to...', indicating propriety or duty.
Memory tip
Think of 'be' and 'come' - it means to come to be something.
Practice
Base: become
becambecombecume
Usage
70%Spoken
30%Written