Sentence:  There is evidence to suggest , in fact , that many authors of the humorous sketches were prompted to write them - or to make them as indelicate as they are - by way of protesting against the artificial refinements which had <WSD>come</WSD> to dominate the polite letters of the South . 
Meaning of the word marked with <WSD> tags:  reach or enter a state, relation, condition, use, or position