became
- 1Past tense of become.
He became famous almost overnight after the film's release.
The lake became frozen solid during the harsh winter.
Note
The ordinary past tense carries every meaning of the verb, not only the change of state. Alongside he became famous, it keeps the older sense of suiting someone (the hat became her) and of being fitting (such words hardly became a guest). After have, the form changes to become, identical to the base, and using the past tense there gives the nonstandard participle.
- 2Past participle of become. Nonstandard; the standard form is become.
He has became much more careful since the accident.
They had became close friends by the end of the summer.
Note
A past participle that edited English rejects. Careful writing uses become after have: has become, had become. The slip is old and persistent. William Murray wrote would have became forfeited in 1768, and Ruth M. J. Byrne's The Rational Imagination (2007) has would have became a scientist. It turns up after has, had and would have. Outside casual speech, replace it with become.
became is a form of become
become, verb: To begin to be something, or to change into a different state or thing. Full entry
- Spelling
- become → became: irregular (no -ed)
Use it in a sentence
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