ENCOUNTERS Synonyms: 68 Similar and Opposite Words

encounters 1 of 2

verb

present tense third-person singular of encounter

as in meets

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 finds

to come upon unexpectedly or by chance we encountered a host of unforeseen problems during the restoration of our 200-year-old house

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as in faces

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

encounters

2 of 2

noun

plural of encounter

as in skirmishes

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 encounters

Verb

Their biggest fear is that a powerful hurricane strikes a dense urban area, like Miami, and encounters a population not unlike the residents of 1926, who were ill prepared for a storm and its aftermath. —

Miami Herald Archives, Miami Herald, 3 June 2026 Anyone who encounters a moose should give it time and space to move, wildlife officials said. —

Lauren Penington, Denver Post, 27 May 2026 The material encounters massive energy barriers that prevent it from naturally reaching this state. —

Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 26 May 2026 The mental health domain is also a realm that encounters imbalance difficulties. —

Lance Eliot, Forbes.com, 23 May 2026 The scary-looking fellow who Mando encounters on his way to see Lord Janu (Jonny Coyne) is an Iktotchi named Hogsbreth, played by Matthew Willig. —

Brendan Morrow, USA Today, 23 May 2026 She is invited to join him and his fratty tech-bro buddies on a business trip to Bangkok, but their private plane encounters violent turbulence during a storm. —

Brianna Zigler, Entertainment Weekly, 21 May 2026 Every creature Yoshi encounters presents new, rewarding gameplay concepts and tools for exploration and experimentation. —

Will Greenwald, PC Magazine, 19 May 2026 Stephan said the selection process for awardees is difficult because her office encounters thousands of victims each year. —

Julie Gallant, San Diego Union-Tribune, 19 May 2026

Noun

His encounters include an apparently mute teen acrobat played by Kinski, who appears topless in a scene. —

ABC News, 3 June 2026 The Residents Medical model weaves USMLE preparation throughout the candidate's overall pathway, allowing clinical encounters to reinforce academic concepts and academic study to deepen clinical understanding. —

Lyssanoel Frater, USA Today, 3 June 2026 There were up to about 1 million such ICE encounters from January 2025 to March 2026, according to data the group obtained from public records requests. —

Huo Jingnan, NPR, 3 June 2026 Now, Stratton breaks his silence to provide a startling first-hand account of the discoveries, encounters, challenges, and behind-the-scenes revelations that profoundly altered his understanding of humanity’s place in the universe and took a disturbing toll on him and his family. —

Matt Grobar, Deadline, 3 June 2026 Carpenter says the disturbing encounters left her fearful for her safety and that of relatives living with her, as police label the suspect’s fixation irrational and increasingly dangerous. —

Emily St. Martin, Los Angeles Times, 2 June 2026 The film captures the uncertainty and unexpected shifts in behavior that can happen during abrupt highly emotional encounters. —

Christopher Arnott, Hartford Courant, 2 June 2026 Through these juxtapositions and serendipitous encounters, they are given agency to make their own connections, setting up a challenging tension and offering a new paradigm for museums. —

Time, 2 June 2026 Telemedicine visits increased more than sevenfold in the early months of the pandemic, and by 2020 roughly 1 in 5 medical encounters in the United States occurred virtually. —

Iyesatta Massaquoi Emeli, STAT, 2 June 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for encounters

Verb

Think Woodstock lodge meets the French Alps meets Williamsburg, Brooklyn in the winter where classic rock 'n' roll tunes from the likes of Springsteen and The Stones add to its cozy retro vibe.

— Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 4 June 2026
Eventually Erica Kane meets Dimitri, and they get married and divorced and married again.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 3 June 2026