venir a + Infinitive
Turn Out to
Venir a + infinitive can express an approximate amount or equivalence, or a result reached in a situation. An unexpected outcome is possible but not required.
How It Works
Venir a + infinitive is an advanced verbal periphrasis that adds a layer of nuance to statements about results and quantities. The basic structure is always conjugated venir + a + infinitive.
It has two primary meanings:
1. To Express a Consequence or Result
This use indicates that something is the final outcome or logical conclusion of a series of events or a particular situation. It often translates to 'to turn out to be', 'to end up being', or 'to come to mean'.
Su idea vino a cambiarlo todo.(His idea came to change everything.)Al final, sus palabras vinieron a ser una profecía.(In the end, his words turned out to be a prophecy.)
2. To Express Approximation
This usage is common with verbs related to cost, quantity, or measurement, such as costar, salir, ser, or medir. It means 'to be about', 'to come to approximately'.
La reparación viene a costar unos 500 euros.(The repair comes to about 500 euros.)El viaje completo viene a durar unas tres horas.(The whole trip comes to last about three hours.)
Comparison with Similar Structures:
It's important not to confuse venir a + infinitive with other periphrases:
- llegar a + infinitive: This can highlight reaching a stage or an extreme ('to get to', 'to go so far as to'). Effort may be supplied by context; it is not required in every use. Venir a can instead present approximation or an eventual result.
- acabar por + infinitive: This means 'to end up doing' something, often after hesitation or contrary actions.
Venir a + infinitivefocuses more on the situation's outcome rather than a subject's final decision.
Register varies: resultative uses can sound formal, while approximate-price expressions also occur in ordinary conversation. Distinguish these auxiliary uses from literal coming for a purpose, as in Vengo a ayudarte.
Examples (5)
- Las dos propuestas vienen a ser lo mismo en la práctica.
The two proposals turn out to be the same thing in practice.
Word by Word: The two proposals come to be the same thing in practice.
Vienen a ser presents practical equivalence: the proposals amount to the same thing. This need not describe a surprising discovery or a chronological process.
- Cada entrada para el concierto viene a salir por unos ochenta euros.
Each ticket for the concert comes to about eighty euros.
Word by Word: Each ticket for the concert comes to cost for about eighty euros.
This example uses the structure to give an approximate cost.
Viene a salir poris a common way to talk about prices. - Con el tiempo, su apoyo vino a ser fundamental para el proyecto.
Over time, his support came to be fundamental for the project.
Word by Word: With the time, his support came to be fundamental for the project.
Con el tiempo frames the support as an eventual important result. The sentence need not imply that it had no importance at the beginning.
- Todo esto viene a demostrar que nuestra hipótesis era correcta.
All of this comes to show that our hypothesis was correct.
Word by Word: All of this comes to demonstrate that our hypothesis was correct.
The structure is used to present a logical conclusion based on prior evidence ('all of this').
- Un coche de segunda mano como este te vendría a costar la mitad.
A second-hand car like this would come to cost you half.
Word by Word: A car of second hand like this to you would come to cost the half.
This example uses the conditional tense (
vendría) to express an approximate hypothetical cost.
Common Mistakes
Treating venir a ser and llegar a ser as identical in every context.
Different MeaningDespués de mucho esfuerzo, vino a ser el director de la empresa.Después de mucho esfuerzo, llegó a ser el director de la empresa.Both sentences can be grammatical. Llegó a ser highlights reaching the position, and después de mucho esfuerzo explicitly supplies effort. Vino a ser presents the eventual outcome. This is a difference of focus, not a prohibition on venir a with personal achievements.
How It Connects
Learn This First
To understand 'venir a + infinitive', learners must first be familiar with the conjugation of the irregular verb 'venir' (to come) and the use of the preposition 'a' to link verbs with infinitives.
- a/de/en/con/sinBasic Prepositions
This pattern uses the preposition 'a' as a mandatory connector between the conjugated verb and the infinitive.
Foundations - vine/viniste/vino/vinimos/vinieronPreterite of Venir
This construction is frequently used in the preterite tense to describe how a situation eventually turned out.
Level 2
Related Patterns
- llegar a + InfinitiveManage To/Come to
Llegar a can emphasize reaching a stage or an extreme; it does not always entail effort. Venir a can present a result or an approximation. Their result meanings can overlap.
Level 5 - acabar por + InfinitiveEnd Up Doing
Both indicate a final outcome.
Level 6acabar por + infinitivemeans 'to end up doing' something, often after some deliberation or contrary action.venir a + infinitiveis more about a situation's logical or eventual conclusion. - soler + InfinitiveHabitual Action
Another common verbal periphrasis. It's useful to compare how different verbs (
Level 5soler,venir,llegar,acabar) lose their literal meaning when combined with an infinitive to express nuances like habit, consequence, or achievement. - ir + a + InfinitiveNear Future
Ir a + infinitive can present a prospective event, not necessarily an immediate one. Venir a + infinitive instead has approximation or result readings in this lesson. Both also need to be distinguished from literal motion followed by a purpose.
Level 1
Words in This Pattern
Practice venir a + Infinitive in Bubblegum
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