come to light

1. to move etc towards the person speaking or writing, or towards the place being referred to by him. Come here!; Are you coming to the dance?; John has come to see me; Have any letters come for me?

2. to become near or close to something in time or space. Christmas is coming soon.

3. to happen or be situated. The letter `d' comes between `c' and è' in the alphabet.

4. (often with to) to happen (by accident). How did you come to break your leg?

5. to arrive at (a certain state etc). What are things coming to? We have come to an agreement.

6. (with to) (of numbers, prices etc) to amount (to). The total comes to 51.

interjection

expressing disapproval, drawing attention etc. Come, come! That was very rude of you!

ˈcomer noun

late-comers will not be admitted; We welcome all comers.

ˈcoming noun

the comings and goings of the people in the street.

ˈcomeback noun

a return (especially to show business). The actress made a comeback years after retiring.

ˈcomedown noun

a fall in dignity etc. The smaller car was a bit of a comedown after the Rolls Royce.

come about

to happen. How did that come about?

come across

to meet or find by chance. He came across some old friends.

come along

1. to come with or accompany the person speaking etc. Come along with me!

2. to progress. How are things coming along?

come by

to get. How did you come by that black eye?

come down

to decrease; to become less. Tea has come down in price.

come into one's own

to have the opportunity of showing what one can do etc. He has at last come into his own as a pop-singer.

come off

1. to fall off. Her shoe came off.

2. to turn out (well); to succeed. The gamble didn't come off.

come on

1. to appear on stage or the screen. They waited for the comedian to come on.

2. hurry up!. Come on – we'll be late for the party!

3. don't be ridiculous!. Come on, you don't really expect me to believe that!

come out

1. to become known. The truth finally came out.

2. to be published. This newspaper comes out once a week.

3. to strike. The men have come out (on strike).

4. (of a photograph) to be developed. This photograph has come out very well.

5. to be removed. This dirty mark won't come out.

come round

1. (also come around) to visit. Come round and see us soon.

2. to regain consciousness. After receiving anesthesia, don't expect to come round for at least twenty minutes.

come to

to regain consciousness. When will he come to after the operation?

come to light

to be discovered. The theft only came to light when the owners returned from holiday.

come upon

to meet, find or discover by chance. She came upon a solution to the problem.

come up with

to think of; to produce. He's come up with a great idea.

come what may

whatever happens. I'll give you my support, come what may!

to come

(in the) future. in the days to come.

light¹

(lait) noun

1. the brightness given by the sun, a flame, lamps etc that makes things able to be seen. It was nearly dawn and the light was getting stronger; Sunlight streamed into the room.

2. something which gives light (eg a lamp). Suddenly all the lights went out.

3. something which can be used to set fire to something else; a flame. Have you got a light for my cigarette?

4. a way of viewing or regarding. He regarded her action in a favourable light.

adjective

1. having light; not dark. The studio was a large, light room.

2. (of a colour) pale; closer to white than black. light green.

verb – past tense, past participle lit (lit) , ˈlighted –

1. to give light to. The room was lit only by candles.

2. to (make something) catch fire. She lit the gas; I think this match is damp, because it won't light.

ˈlightness noun

ˈlighten verb

to make or become brighter. The white ceiling lightened the room; The sky was lightening.

ˈlighter noun

something used for lighting (a cigarette etc).

ˈlighting noun

a means of providing light. The lighting was so bad in the restaurant that we could hardly see.

lighthouse noun

a building built on rocks, coastline etc with a (flashing) light to guide or warn ships.

ˈlight-year noun

the distance light travels in a year (nearly 9.5 million million kilometres).

bring to light

to reveal or cause to be noticed. The scandal was brought to light by the investigations of a journalist.

come to light

to be revealed or discovered. The manuscript came to light in a box of books at an auction.

in the light of

taking into consideration (eg new information). The theory has been abandoned in the light of more recent discoveries.

light up

1. to begin to give out light. Evening came and the streetlights lit up.

2. to make, be or become full of light. The powerful searchlight lit up the building; She watched the house light up as everyone awoke.

3. to make or become happy. Her face lit up when she saw him; A sudden smile lit up her face.

see the light

1. to be born, discovered, produced etc. After many problems his invention finally saw the light (of day).

2. to be converted to someone else's point of view etc.

set light to

to cause to begin burning. He set light to the pile of rubbish in his garden.

Mentioned in ?

References in periodicals archive ?

It's just that examples are more likely to come to light in these challenging times as businesses struggle and are obliged to vigilantly monitor their books, accounts and assets."

Businesses need to act on any warning signals and tackle fraudulent matters as soon as they come to light."

come to light

come

light1

light¹