as in to encounter
to come upon face-to-face or as if face-to-face
happened upon the hotel manager in the lobby and promptly complained about the room
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for happen (upon)
Verb
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They’re typically encountered at ports of entry by federal agents, and receive notices to appear in immigration court, usually in one to three years.—
Shawn Tully,
Fortune,
22 Feb. 2026 -
The gold also caps off a four-year cycle during which Gu struggled with panic attacks and encountered online trolling in both the United States and China, where some citizens see her as a privileged interloper.—
Sean Gregory,
Time,
22 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Szijjártó also said Saturday that Hungary will block a $106-billion EU loan to Ukraine meant to help Kyiv meet its military and economic needs for the next two years.—
Justin Spike,
Los Angeles Times,
23 Feb. 2026
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Designed to meet the eco-friendly needs of operating construction equipment, it is built for use in urban and residential environments where noise and exhaust emissions are capped.—
Atharva Gosavi,
Interesting Engineering,
23 Feb. 2026
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Cite this Entry
“Happen (upon).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/happen%20%28upon%29. Accessed 26 Feb. 2026.
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