Meaning & use
bring about
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Meaning
verbphrasal verb
To cause something to happen, especially an important change or result.
Grammar: Takes an object, which can go between or after the parts only when it is a pronoun: bring it about, bring about a change.
Patterns
- bring about something
- bring something about
The new law brought about a sharp fall in plastic waste.
Only a great effort by the whole community could bring about lasting peace.
Nobody knew what had brought about the sudden change in her mood.
Word forms
| third person singular | brings about |
|---|---|
| past tense | brought about |
| past participle | brought about |
| -ing form | bringing about |
Common combinations
- bring about change
- Protests helped bring about change in the way schools were funded.
- bring about a result
- Months of careful negotiation brought about an agreement.
- bring about the downfall of
- His greed brought about the downfall of the family firm.
- bring about peace
- The treaty was meant to bring about peace between the two countries.
- be brought about by
- The crisis was brought about by a lack of planning.
Synonyms and how they differ
- cause
- Cause is the plain, common word and works for anything, while bring about usually suggests a notable change or result.
- produce
- Produce suggests creating a concrete result and is less often about big social change.
- engineer
- Engineer suggests that someone deliberately and cleverly planned the outcome, which bring about does not require.
- effect
- Effect, as a verb, is formal and means to make a change happen, and it is often confused with affect.
Opposites
Word family
- come about verb
- to happen, with no one causing it directly
- bring on verb
- to cause something unpleasant to start
Commonly confused: bring about or bring up? bring about or come about?
bring about vs bring up
Bring up means to raise a child or to mention a topic, but bring about means to cause something to happen.
bring about vs come about
Come about means to happen, with no one causing it, while bring about needs someone or something that makes it happen.
Practice
Which phrase best completes the sentence: The invention of the printing press ___ huge changes in how people shared information.
Choose one answer.
Brought about means caused, which is what the printing press did. Brought up would mean raised or mentioned, and the other options do not fit.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “bring about”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.