happen to

phrasal verb

happened to; happening to; happens to

: to affect or involve (someone or something) as the result of an event or action

An odd thing happened to me on my way to the office last week.

I wonder what/whatever happened to that guy after he lost his job.

especially : to affect (someone or something) in a bad or harmful way

I promise nothing will happen to you.

What happened to the car? There's a big scratch on the fender.

Examples of happen to in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Injuries happen to every team, but Parsons and Kraft were their two most dynamic players — strong game-plan considerations for every opponent. —Mike Sando, New York Times, 12 Jan. 2026

There’s one thing a front-runner should do and that’s run in the front, which is exactly what’s happening to Jessie Buckley this awards season. —Fran Hoepfner, Vulture, 12 Jan. 2026

The youth happened to be out of town that day, authorities said. —Nate Gartrell, Mercury News, 12 Jan. 2026

There’s not a lot of dialogue, but there are many close-ups and sound design that convey the emotional intensity of what’s happening to the lead and his surroundings. —Destiny Jackson, Deadline, 12 Jan. 2026

Rhymes for happen to

• amadou
• avenue
• ballyhoo
• baraboo
• barbecue
• barbeque
• bugaboo
• cabildo
• caribou
• cockatoo
• detinue
• devalue