1
as in confronting
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 finding
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 facing
to enter into contest or conflict with
the troops encountered bands of guerrilla fighters as they made their way across the desert
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of encountering
Others are encountering problems as well.
—
Steve Henson, Los Angeles Times, 9 June 2026
John Early, as anyone encountering his work soon apprehends, chooses the latter.
—Lauren Michele Jackson, New Yorker, 7 June 2026
Behind the scenes, Villafaña was encountering some of the same resistance about prosecuting Epstein.
—Julie K. Brown, Miami Herald, 4 June 2026
Google Pixel 10 Pro owners are encountering a significant hurdle when trying to access Google's advanced AI features.
—Paul Monckton, Forbes.com, 31 May 2026
The best safety measure when encountering bees near nests is to leave the area and create distance to avoid being stung by female carpenter bees.
—Michelle Mastro, Martha Stewart, 30 May 2026
The series was an anthology hosted by the titular Frankelda, the ghost of an aspiring horror writer, who told stories about children encountering the paranormal.
—Wilson Chapman, IndieWire, 28 May 2026
Criteria include water calmness, crowds, beach cleanliness, and the likelihood of encountering wildlife.
—Lydia Mansel, Travel + Leisure, 27 May 2026
While searching the home on Wednesday, police safely cleared two women and a child from the home before encountering a locked bedroom, Bettison said.
—Joseph Buczek, CBS News, 27 May 2026
Steve Henson, Los Angeles Times, 9 June 2026
John Early, as anyone encountering his work soon apprehends, chooses the latter.
—Lauren Michele Jackson, New Yorker, 7 June 2026
Behind the scenes, Villafaña was encountering some of the same resistance about prosecuting Epstein.
—Julie K. Brown, Miami Herald, 4 June 2026
Google Pixel 10 Pro owners are encountering a significant hurdle when trying to access Google's advanced AI features.
—Paul Monckton, Forbes.com, 31 May 2026
The best safety measure when encountering bees near nests is to leave the area and create distance to avoid being stung by female carpenter bees.
—Michelle Mastro, Martha Stewart, 30 May 2026
The series was an anthology hosted by the titular Frankelda, the ghost of an aspiring horror writer, who told stories about children encountering the paranormal.
—Wilson Chapman, IndieWire, 28 May 2026
Criteria include water calmness, crowds, beach cleanliness, and the likelihood of encountering wildlife.
—Lydia Mansel, Travel + Leisure, 27 May 2026
While searching the home on Wednesday, police safely cleared two women and a child from the home before encountering a locked bedroom, Bettison said.
—Joseph Buczek, CBS News, 27 May 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for encountering
Verb
-
Its airports have remained operational, its economy benefited from a larger citizen population (rather than relying on expatriates), and Tehran has been more cautious in confronting the kingdom directly.—
Mohammed Sergie,
semafor.com,
4 June 2026
-
There will be an all-over-the-place nature to this conversation because, after all, that is most reflective of the complications confronting the Royals.—
Sam McDowell,
Kansas City Star,
3 June 2026
Verb
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From intelligent fraud monitoring to keeping transactions (and cash) flowing, tools like these are finding fresh applications of AI that help sellers maintain an advantage in a competitive marketplace.—
Jason Phillips,
USA Today,
29 May 2026
-
In a sea of prestige actresses doing dramedy, Byrne is a true comedic talent, sporting incredible instincts for finding the funniest angle for Sylvia to take in her line readings or gestures.—
Joe Reid,
Vulture,
29 May 2026
Verb
-
Other challenges to the fund The DOJ is facing a plethora of other legal and political challenges to the fund.—
Aysha Bagchi,
USA Today,
5 June 2026
-
Worse yet, the region is already facing a water crisis, a dire environmental predicament that could be made far worse by the development.—
Victor Tangermann,
Futurism,
4 June 2026
Verb
-
Less than two weeks later, Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar visited Baku, meeting with the Azerbaijani president and other top officials.—
Tal Shalev,
CNN Money,
5 June 2026
-
The two were meeting as part of a vape pen purchase that later turned into a robbery attempt, according to the report.—
Maveah Griffith,
Charlotte Observer,
4 June 2026
Verb
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As many as 7 in 10 of those operators blamed tight visa rules, vetting of immigrants and a spike in the cost of catching a flight into the United States, brought on by the Iran war, as reasons for the lousy booking rates.—
Andre Mouchard,
Oc Register,
8 June 2026
-
The Baltimore native dropped a rap video that is catching the eye of more than a million people.—
CBS Baltimore Staff,
CBS News,
8 June 2026
Verb
-
In Mexico, South Koreans are partying with the locals and mariachi bands are greeting teams at their hotels.—
Kyle Feldscher,
CNN Money,
11 June 2026
-
This is perhaps why people were so surprised to see William, always so cognizant of optics, greeting Beatrice so warmly.—
Lizzie Lanuza,
StyleCaster,
9 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Encountering.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/encountering. Accessed 12 Jun. 2026.
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