ENCOUNTER Synonyms: 68 Similar and Opposite Words

encounter 1 of 2

verb

in-ˈkau̇n-tər

Definition of encounter

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

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

as in to face

to enter into contest or conflict with the troops encountered bands of guerrilla fighters as they made their way across the desert

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

encounter

2 of 2

noun

as in skirmish

a brief clash between enemies or rivals survived an encounter with the school bully at the local park

Synonyms & Similar Words

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of encounter

Verb

Erica Billups said her son and daughter rode Goliath about an hour before Kariem’s death and encountered a problem with the restraint on one seat. — ABC News, 15 Oct. 2026 What’s Happening Guidance for parents is moving beyond daily screen-time totals toward a focus on what teens actually encounter online. — Ashley Lynch, Sacbee.com, 15 Oct. 2026

Noun

In a statement Wednesday night, Woodland Police Chief Ryan Kinnan said investigators reviewed video evidence of Tuesday’s encounter and determined that several claims made by federal immigration officials were inaccurate. — Sacbee.com, 22 Oct. 2026 While the incidents are still being investigated, police shared some of the circumstances of the encounters on Thursday. — Kendrick Calfee, Kansas City Star, 22 Oct. 2026 See All Example Sentences for encounter

Recent Examples of Synonyms for encounter

Verb

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, which oversees vehicle safety, largely relies on automakers to certify that their cars meet federal standards.

— Bilin Lin, Fortune, 17 Oct. 2026
Even a slight misalignment could leave visible defects where colors meet, while four hotends introduce more components that could potentially fail.

— New Atlas, New Atlas, 17 Oct. 2026

Definition of meet

Verb

Yet the clubs from small markets with relatively low payrolls found ways to play the best baseball in each of their respective leagues this season en route to the World Series.

— Andrew Greif, NBC news, 20 Oct. 2026
Other organizations linked to Page, including Flu Lab LLC, One Aero, and Oceankind, were also incorporated in Delaware that month, after previously being in California, Rogelberg’s analysis of state filings found.

— Sydney Lake, Fortune, 20 Oct. 2026

Definition of find

Verb

The group has faced criticism over its stances on various issues, including the wars in Gaza and Iran.

— Saige Miller, NPR, 22 Oct. 2026
The move also lands weeks before Election Day, as Hochul faces Republican nominee Bruce Blakeman, who has criticized her for not opting in sooner.

— Lara Murray-Sterzel, Fortune, 22 Oct. 2026

Definition of face

Noun

This leads to even more behind-the-scenes skirmishes laced with character-centric comedy, as opposing factions align.

— Siddhant Adlakha, Variety, 15 Oct. 2026
Ties between the two countries remain strained over their long-running Himalayan border dispute, which erupted into a deadly skirmishes in 2020 that saw soldiers from both sides use rocks and iron rods in brutal hand-to-hand combat.

— Helen Regan, CNN Money, 10 Oct. 2026

Definition of skirmish

Verb

Netanyahu, two weeks out from close elections that could end his time in power, is again confronted with an issue that has drawn growing international condemnation.

— Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 19 Oct. 2026
The question confronting Israel and its international partners is not simply whether money should flow into Gaza, but also who controls it—and whether the next arrangement will avoid the failures of the last.

— Eric Cortellessa, Time, 18 Oct. 2026

Definition of confront

Noun

The other was a man helping organize the fair who had experienced an eerily similar brush with death once before.

— Théoden Janes, Charlotte Observer, 21 Oct. 2026
The city has already deployed goats to chomp away at invasive brush along the hillsides, but Cosgrove, who wrote Measure M, said more work is necessary to protect the community.

— Hannah Fry, Los Angeles Times, 20 Oct. 2026

Definition of brush

Verb

Scientists have previously speculated that a GRB would vaporize anything caught in its death rays up to 200 light-years from the source.

— Robin George Andrews, Scientific American, 20 Oct. 2026
On this trip, she’s been busy in the studio with Camila Cabello, but tonight she’s headed to SoFi Stadium to catch Mars’ latest tour.

— Mikael Wood, Los Angeles Times, 19 Oct. 2026

Definition of catch

Noun

Russia's heavy bombardment of the power grid ahead of winter has been an annual feature of the war, aimed at wearing down Ukraine's appetite for the fight by denying civilians heat and running water.

— Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 18 Oct. 2026
Russia’s heavy bombardment of the power grid ahead of winter has been an annual feature of the war, aimed at wearing down Ukraine’s appetite for the fight by denying civilians heat and running water.

— ABC News, ABC News, 17 Oct. 2026