1
as in met
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 found
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
3
as in faced
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
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of encountered
But even at a progressive institution like Antioch, Coretta encountered the quiet betrayal of liberal hypocrisy.
—
Literary Hub, 27 Jan. 2026
Freestyle Libre maintained impressive growth, although overall device sales encountered some challenges from year-over-year comparisons.
—Trefis Team, Forbes.com, 23 Jan. 2026
With the new shift, a smaller number of groups went out and encountered about 80 people.
—Charlotte Observer, 23 Jan. 2026
Hours after her murder, Wilson encountered Ruiz and persuaded her to get into his vehicle under false pretenses, and then killed her before running her over multiple times and abandoning her body in a nearby field, per Gulf Coast News Now.
—Jane Lacroix, PEOPLE, 22 Jan. 2026
Phase One encountered setbacks due to Hamas not handing over the final deceased hostage and the Israeli airstrikes that occurred after the cease-fire came into effect in October.
—Olivia-Anne Cleary, Time, 22 Jan. 2026
Strategy’s purchase, therefore, was unexpected—perhaps more so given that a key piece of crypto legislation, known as the Clarity Act, encountered an unexpected stumble last week.
—Carlos Garcia, Fortune, 22 Jan. 2026
The wild buck set off a burglary alarm at Webster Bank in Ridge, where Suffolk County officers encountered the unexpected intruder.
—Alexa Herrera, CBS News, 22 Jan. 2026
Air travelers have already encountered near misses, such as when a test flight of SpaceX’s Starship vehicle last year scattered debris across a swath of the Caribbean and forced aircraft to take evasive action.
—Lee Billings, Scientific American, 21 Jan. 2026
Literary Hub, 27 Jan. 2026
Freestyle Libre maintained impressive growth, although overall device sales encountered some challenges from year-over-year comparisons.
—Trefis Team, Forbes.com, 23 Jan. 2026
With the new shift, a smaller number of groups went out and encountered about 80 people.
—Charlotte Observer, 23 Jan. 2026
Hours after her murder, Wilson encountered Ruiz and persuaded her to get into his vehicle under false pretenses, and then killed her before running her over multiple times and abandoning her body in a nearby field, per Gulf Coast News Now.
—Jane Lacroix, PEOPLE, 22 Jan. 2026
Phase One encountered setbacks due to Hamas not handing over the final deceased hostage and the Israeli airstrikes that occurred after the cease-fire came into effect in October.
—Olivia-Anne Cleary, Time, 22 Jan. 2026
Strategy’s purchase, therefore, was unexpected—perhaps more so given that a key piece of crypto legislation, known as the Clarity Act, encountered an unexpected stumble last week.
—Carlos Garcia, Fortune, 22 Jan. 2026
The wild buck set off a burglary alarm at Webster Bank in Ridge, where Suffolk County officers encountered the unexpected intruder.
—Alexa Herrera, CBS News, 22 Jan. 2026
Air travelers have already encountered near misses, such as when a test flight of SpaceX’s Starship vehicle last year scattered debris across a swath of the Caribbean and forced aircraft to take evasive action.
—Lee Billings, Scientific American, 21 Jan. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for encountered
Verb
-
Thousands of protesters met in front of City Hall in the afternoon, before many marched to the federal detention center, where a mob of violent agitators swarmed the area, pushing a large construction dumpster and blocking the entrance to the building's loading dock.—
Michael Sinkewicz,
FOXNews.com,
31 Jan. 2026
-
No wonder then, when substitute Mia Enderby met Jenna Clark’s cross perfectly in the 92nd minute, putting Liverpool 1-0 up, the cries of celebration spilled out before the ball had officially crossed the goal line.—
Megan Feringa,
New York Times,
30 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
Dear Abby is written by Abigail Van Buren, also known as Jeanne Phillips, and was founded by her mother, Pauline Phillips.—
Jeanne Phillips,
Mercury News,
27 Jan. 2026
-
In 1916, the Tri-State/Denver Buddhist Temple, also known as the Denver Buddhist Church at the time, was founded at 1950 Lawrence St.—
Jessica Alvarado Gamez,
Denver Post,
27 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
Even for top-class wine producers like PFV members have faced the challenge.—
Yuri Shima,
Forbes.com,
25 Jan. 2026
-
Gipson and Lorenz initially faced local charges stemming from their arrests and were arraigned in Sacramento Superior Court.—
Rosalio Ahumada,
Sacbee.com,
24 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
Omar is the second House Democrat to be physically confronted in recent days.—
Caitlin Yilek,
CBS News,
28 Jan. 2026
-
Whenever Karla would be confronted with the horrifying truth of her father’s abuse, the film dipped into ethereal, almost surrealist flashback sequences of the young girl in nature.—
Rafa Sales Ross,
Variety,
28 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
Real Madrid star Arda Guler was caught disagreeing with head coach Alvaro Arbeloa, after being brought off in Wednesday's 4-2 Champions League loss to Benfica.—
Tom Sanderson,
Forbes.com,
29 Jan. 2026
-
Secure loose outdoor items and adjust plans as necessary so you're not caught outside.—
CA Weather Bot,
Sacbee.com,
29 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
On Tuesday morning, students will be greeted by faculty, student ambassadors, and the Pali High band as families, alumni, and neighbors line the streets to welcome the campus back to life.—
Daily News,
Daily News,
27 Jan. 2026
-
Holloway delivers a phenomenal leading performance, not least because of its unstinting focus on all-consuming desire, and it was duly greeted by great roars of approval at Sunday afternoon’s opening.—
Chris Jones,
Chicago Tribune,
26 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Encountered.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/encountered. Accessed 31 Jan. 2026.
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