come forward

phrasal verb

came forward; come forward; coming forward; comes forward

: to make the effort required to provide information, make a claim, volunteer, etc.

No one has yet come forward to claim the reward.

Essex Police is now appealing for anyone with information or dash cam footage of the crash to come forward and help with their inquiries.

—Alex Gidden

The young woman … had come forward after six months to accuse him of assault.

—Jules De Cinque

also : to become publicly known

While the case was dropped the prosecutor says if substantial evidence came forward this case could go to a trial in the future …

—Don Granese

Examples of come forward in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

An Oakland County lottery club, the Wolverine FLL Club, made up of four members, came forward to claim the prize. —Jennifer Sangalang, Cincinnati Enquirer, 13 Dec. 2025

During that investigation, 13 other parents came forward to voice concerns about issues including hazing, according to the documents. —Lillie Davidson, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 12 Dec. 2025

In the message, Grasso also requested that any student with information about the situation come forward. —Jackson Thompson, FOXNews.com, 12 Dec. 2025

Allegheny County police said a 16-year-old boy came forward in November, alleging he was abused in 2021 by then-Highlands School District teacher Sean Dicer. —Madeline Bartos, CBS News, 8 Dec. 2025

Rhymes for come forward

• carryforward
• equatorward
• henceforward
• straightforward
• thenceforward
• shoreward

Legal Definition

come forward

intransitive verb

come for·​ward

: to make a presentation of something to the court

—usually used with with

must come forward with materials to show that there is a genuine issue of fact

—J. H. Friedenthal et al.

coming forward with the evidence