as in encountered
to come upon face-to-face or as if face-to-face
happened upon the hotel manager in the lobby and promptly complained about the room
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for happened (upon)
Verb
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By trapping and levitating phonons in a vacuum with an optical tweezer, the researchers demonstrated the technology with the device, but also encountered noise issues.—
Ameya Paleja,
Interesting Engineering,
30 Mar. 2026 -
Officers encountered large groups of juveniles downtown on Sunday and responded to multiple fights, officials said.—
JT Moodee Lockman,
CBS News,
30 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Molly was safely transported back to the mainland, where Johnston met her, and the two had an emotional reunion after an eight-day ordeal.—
Saman Shafiq,
USA Today,
4 Apr. 2026
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The two friends met years ago while working for different social justice organizations.—
Amanda Rosa,
Miami Herald,
4 Apr. 2026
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Cite this Entry
“Happened (upon).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/happened%20%28upon%29. Accessed 6 Apr. 2026.
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