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I have noticed that people, particularly Americans, sometimes say come out instead of come in the sense of arriving at a place. For example, in the 23rd episode of the fifth season of Friends Joey, who is in Las Vegas says to Chandler, who in New-York the following.

Don't come out here!

Interestingly enough, I couldn't find any dictionary that defined come out as arriving somewhere. Is come out used when talking about coming somewhere from a different city? If so, then is it totally synonymous with come in that sense?

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That combination isn't in a dictionary, because it's a verb followed by an adverb, not a single verb. It's a common usage meaning to come to a more or less distant place.

Here is a definition of "out" that applies:
American Heritage Dictionary "out" adverb
3.a. Away from a usual place: stepped out for a drink of water; went out for the evening.

Someone could speak of a distant place, saying "I'm going to go out there to visit a friend."

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  • Thank you for the answer! Could you tell me if can just say "come" with the same meaning? May 29, 2020 at 17:32
  • Yes, in that context, "Don't come here!" , with a little extra stress on "here" would have the same denotation, but it wouldn't be as specific to the sense of someone coming from a distant location coming to join another person already there.. May 29, 2020 at 18:37
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    I suspect it's come / out here rather than come out / here. May 30, 2020 at 7:59

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