come up

Name: come up, English Word Data
Creator: Wiktionary
License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

verb

By PlainSpell · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) · analyzed September 3, 2026

The verdict

“come up” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as a verb. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

Unranked
below top-frequency English: 7
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - To emerge or become known, especially unexpectedly.

Corpus desk

Index EN-come-up · come up · English

come up · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables

FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
LEN-LONG 7 letters
VOW-3 3 vowels
CONFUS-0 No pairs
VAR-0 0 variants
BOOK-THIN "C" thin
PHOTO-UNK Peer pending

Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Key facts for come up
Property	Value
Headword	come up
Language	English
Part of speech	Verb
Letters	7
Misspellings tracked	0
Confusable pairs	0
Source	Wiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “come up” in English

come upfalls outside the top-100,000 ranked English words, the long-tail zone of technical, archaic, or low-frequency vocabulary, exactly where readers second-guess spellings most.

Beyond rank #100,000. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

come up is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as averb. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 15 senses are on record.

Our edit-distance generator produced no likely misspellings for come up, a sign its spelling follows regular English conventions. This headword has no recorded confusable partner, which usually means its spelling is distinct enough that readers don't reach for a similar-looking word instead.

This entry's etymology isn't recorded, so its spelling is easiest explained by how it's pronounced rather than where it came from. The correct English form is come up, spelled C-O-M-E- -U-P.

Definition

1
To emerge or become known, especially unexpectedly.
2
To be revealed to have a certain value, quality, or status.
3
To come to attention and present oneself; to arrive or appear.
4
To appear (before a judge or court).
5
To draw near in time.
6
To approach a time or scheduled event.
7
To reach in height.
8
To rise (above the horizon).
9
To begin to feel the effects of a recreational drug.
10
To arrive at the university. (Compare go down, send down.)
11
To happen or occur.
12
To grow up; to experience a childhood.
13
To do well or be successful.
14
Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see come, up.
15
To come towards; to approach.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

These source excerpts show how come up appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

Unless anything comes up, I'll be there every day this week.
The movie didn't come up to our expectations.

Antonyms

come down go down

This word in other languages

suceder(Español)s'approcher(Français)heraufkommen(Deutsch)

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "come up"?

"come up" is spelled C-O-M-E- -U-P.

What does "come up" mean?

As a verb, "come up" means: To emerge or become known, especially unexpectedly.

What language does "come up" come from?

"come up" is a English word. PlainSpell's reference spans five languages -- English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German -- with definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data for each.

Is PlainSpell free to use?

Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.