become
be·come/bɪˈkʌm/verb
become is spelled B-E-C-O-M-E: 6 letters and 2 syllables (be·come). It appears 251 times per million words in written English, the 387th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a verb, become means “begin to be; turn into (often with permanent states)” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in become?
| Letters | 6: B-E-C-O-M-E |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2: be·come |
| In writing | 251 times per million words; the 387th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is become?
Become appears 251 times per million words in written English, the 387th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce become?
- /bɪˈkʌm/
- /bəˈkʌm/
- /bɪˈkʊm/
Become has 2 syllables, split be·come in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-become.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of become
- becomes present, singular, he/she/it
- becoming participle, present
- became past, singular, he/she/it, plural
- becomen participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does become mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
verb
- 1
begin to be; turn into (often with permanent states).
Near-synonyms: get, turn, go, come, fall, grow, wax
- 2
To come about; happen; come into being; arise.
What became of him after he was let go?
- 3
To be appropriate for.
It doesn’t become a true gentleman to speak in such a manner.
- 4
Of an adornment, piece of clothing etc.: to look attractive on (someone).
That dress really becomes you.
- 5
obsoleteTo arrive, come (to a place).
- 6
To get, receive.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Become in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | devenir , aller bien |
| German | werden , stehen |
| Portuguese | tornar-se, virar, transformar-se em, ficar, devir , cair bem em |
| Spanish | volverse, hacerse, llegar/pasar a ser, devenir, quedar , quedar bien |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does become come from?
A compound of the sources of be- + come. From Middle English becomen, bicumen, from Old English becuman (“to come (to), approach, arrive, enter, meet with, fall in with; happen, befall; befit”), from Proto-Germanic *bikwemaną (“to come around, come about, come across, come by”), equivalent to be- (“about, around”) + come. Cognate with Scots becum (“to come, arrive, reach a destination”), North Frisian bekommen, bykommen (“to come by, obtain, receive”), West Frisian bikomme (“to come by, obtain, receive”), Dutch bekomen (“to come by, obtain, receive”), German bekommen (“to get, receive, obtain”
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).