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The Meaning of Occur and the Spelling of Its Forms
Occur has three meanings. It means "to be found or met with; appear," as in "a phenomenon that occurs around the world"; it means "to come into existence; happen," as in "an event that occurred on Friday"; and it means "to come to mind," as in "it occurs to me that the word is quite useful."
It's an unusual-looking word, being so small but with two c's up against each other, and then just a simple r at the end. The r is doubled, though, for the past tense: occurred. And the double r continues in the present participle: occurring.
Examples of occur in a Sentence
Michael McCann, Sportico.com, 18 June 2025
The most hazardous conditions are expected to occur between 5 p.m. and 10 p.m., according to NWS.
—Baltimore Sun Staff, Baltimore Sun, 18 June 2025
Two thirds of all atmospheric carbon dioxide emissions since the dawn of the industrial age have occurred since 1990.
—Hersh Shefrin, Forbes.com, 18 June 2025
Another major heist occurred in Manhattan on Jan. 2, 1972, when eight armed men walked into the prominent, celebrity-favorite Pierre Hotel just before 3 a.m. and stole $27 million in jewels and cash from its safety deposit boxes.
—Rachel Treisman, NPR, 18 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for occur
Cite this Entry
“Occur.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/occur. Accessed 21 Jun. 2025.
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