1
as in to meet
to come upon face-to-face or as if face-to-face
quite unexpectedly encountered our next-door neighbor while vacationing in Europe
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to find
to come upon unexpectedly or by chance
we encountered a host of unforeseen problems during the restoration of our 200-year-old house
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of encounter
Liam Twomey, New York Times, 9 May 2025
The other should be left for the viewer to encounter.
—Randy Myers, Mercury News, 8 May 2025
Will Gottsegen, The Atlantic, 9 May 2025
Those observations have suggested that in dense, young star clusters, complex gravitational interactions — particularly close encounters between three or more stars — can propel some stars with enough velocity to force them out of their natal homes and into nearby space.
—Sharmila Kuthunur, Space.com, 9 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for encounter
Verb
The fact Maresca felt secure enough to make either selection — in the Conference League knockout stage, no less — underlines the total lack of jeopardy Chelsea have encountered on their road to the final in Wroclaw, save for one nervy second half in their qualifier against Servette back in August.
—Liam Twomey, New York Times, 9 May 2025
The other should be left for the viewer to encounter.
—Randy Myers, Mercury News, 8 May 2025
Noun
Someone looking to gain access to Trump might have once had to pay thousands of dollars a night for a room at Mar-a-Lago for a chance encounter with the president on the golf course.
—Will Gottsegen, The Atlantic, 9 May 2025
Those observations have suggested that in dense, young star clusters, complex gravitational interactions — particularly close encounters between three or more stars — can propel some stars with enough velocity to force them out of their natal homes and into nearby space.
—Sharmila Kuthunur, Space.com, 9 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for encounter
Recent Examples of Synonyms for encounter
Verb
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Randy Haight – at the time a young patrol officer who was at the crime scene — met his partner at the hospital.—
Erin Moriarty, Liza Finley,
CBS News,
4 May 2025
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Trump and Zelensky briefly met at Pope Francis’s funeral last week.—
Brady Knox,
The Washington Examiner,
3 May 2025
Verb
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Authorities said his car was found at the Mount Adams trailhead, while his remains were found on the Allen Mountain Trail.—
Saleen Martin,
USA Today,
14 May 2025
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Try to find a place that will block blowing or falling debris.—
CA Weather Bot,
Sacbee.com,
13 May 2025
Verb
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During the 1960s and 1970s, groundwater was pumped from the industrial area of Marghera, on the mainland facing into the lagoon.—
Julia Buckley,
CNN Money,
4 May 2025
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Consequently, human workers are facing layoffs, replaced by AI.—
Jack Kelly,
Forbes.com,
4 May 2025
Noun
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But the pause comes amid a backdrop of daily skirmishes, largely by drone warfare.—
Stephen J. Beard,
USA Today,
10 May 2025
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Not about the economic turmoil from tariffs, any one of the skirmishes playing out abroad, or a surprise shake-up in his White House staff.—
Will Gottsegen,
The Atlantic,
9 May 2025
Verb
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But the best leaders rise above the fray, and to this point Devers hasn’t reached a point where his first instinct when confronted by a challenge like this is to lift his team up.—
Mac Cerullo,
Boston Herald,
10 May 2025
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That’s not the only way Leo XIV echoed the voice of his predecessor, Like the late Pope Francis, Leo has also been a strong supporter of the need to confront the threats of climate change.—
Orlando Sentinel Editorial Board,
The Orlando Sentinel,
10 May 2025
Noun
-
The lashes, brushes, and tools are also really great.—
Parizaad Khan Sethi,
Allure,
2 May 2025
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Painting the issue in overly simplistic terms like ‘banning people born male from women’s sports’, with all the connotations and assumptions that statement carries, brushes over the legislative nuances and culture of women’s football, inspiring misinformed responses.—
Katie Whyatt,
New York Times,
2 May 2025
Verb
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In Barca’s 4-0 win in La Liga against Madrid at the Bernabeu in October, Madrid were caught offside 12 times.—
Guillermo Rai,
New York Times,
11 May 2025
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Yet octopuses have been caught performing incredible feats such as escaping aquarium tanks, solving puzzles, unscrewing jar lids and carrying shells as shields.—
Yasemin Saplakoglu,
Wired News,
11 May 2025
Noun
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The court appearance had stalled last month due to a fight over access to a parole document.—
Karim Doumar,
Los Angeles Times,
10 May 2025
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His camp also controlled media rights to his fights in the Philippines.—
Jason Clinkscales,
Sportico.com,
9 May 2025
Cite this Entry
“Encounter.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/encounter. Accessed 18 May. 2025.
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