as in occurred
to take place
did anything exciting happen over the summer?
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of happened
The Nets tied their season high with 36 assists, and six different players recorded at least four assists in the same game, a franchise mark that has only been hit eight times and hadn’t happened since March 2022.
—
C.j. Holmes, New York Daily News, 10 Apr. 2026
Clements said the mistaken identification may have happened because the creature decomposed and lost its telltale shell before it was fossilized, complicating identification.
—ABC News, 9 Apr. 2026
Both shootings happened a little more than two weeks after an ICE agent shot and killed 37-year-old Renée Good.
—Ruben Vives, Los Angeles Times, 9 Apr. 2026
Increasingly common This case happened in the Philadelphia area, but an hour away in Lancaster, a similar AI deepfakes situation has roiled the city for months.
—Nate Anderson, ArsTechnica, 9 Apr. 2026
That’s happened in several Mid Atlantic rivers, but in the absence of larger brutes like blues and flathead, channels will thrive and can break the 15-pound mark.
—Joe Cermele, Outdoor Life, 9 Apr. 2026
Despite what happened, the aircraft remained stable and continued to operate normally.
—Kelly McGreal, FOXNews.com, 9 Apr. 2026
The husband and wife, who married in 2018, each testified about what happened during the hike.
—Marlene Lenthang, NBC news, 9 Apr. 2026
The most recent deadly chase happened in Pomona on Wednesday night.
—Tom Wait, CBS News, 3 Apr. 2026
C.j. Holmes, New York Daily News, 10 Apr. 2026
Clements said the mistaken identification may have happened because the creature decomposed and lost its telltale shell before it was fossilized, complicating identification.
—ABC News, 9 Apr. 2026
Both shootings happened a little more than two weeks after an ICE agent shot and killed 37-year-old Renée Good.
—Ruben Vives, Los Angeles Times, 9 Apr. 2026
Increasingly common This case happened in the Philadelphia area, but an hour away in Lancaster, a similar AI deepfakes situation has roiled the city for months.
—Nate Anderson, ArsTechnica, 9 Apr. 2026
That’s happened in several Mid Atlantic rivers, but in the absence of larger brutes like blues and flathead, channels will thrive and can break the 15-pound mark.
—Joe Cermele, Outdoor Life, 9 Apr. 2026
Despite what happened, the aircraft remained stable and continued to operate normally.
—Kelly McGreal, FOXNews.com, 9 Apr. 2026
The husband and wife, who married in 2018, each testified about what happened during the hike.
—Marlene Lenthang, NBC news, 9 Apr. 2026
The most recent deadly chase happened in Pomona on Wednesday night.
—Tom Wait, CBS News, 3 Apr. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for happened
Verb
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The results also were not as statistically powerful because fewer infections occurred than expected in the placebo group during the trial.—
Tara Haelle,
Scientific American,
9 Apr. 2026
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The flashes occurred as tiny fragments of cosmic material, or micrometeoroids, impacted the lunar surface.—
Stephen Clark,
ArsTechnica,
9 Apr. 2026
Verb
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That came just a few days after news broke that Palantir had secured a $10 billion contract from the US Army over the next decade.—
Allison Morrow,
CNN Money,
7 Aug. 2025
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All five of Bednar’s outs came via strikeout on Wednesday.—
Brendan Kuty,
New York Times,
7 Aug. 2025
Verb
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So while there was nostalgia playing here for the first time as a big-leaguer, Stewart also understood the task at hand.—
Jordan McPherson,
Miami Herald,
7 Apr. 2026
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On March 24, there was one sequence when Jackson won the first rep only for Shelton to come back with a one-handed catch for a touchdown.—
Steven Johnson,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
7 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Johnson’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment Wednesday, nor did HUD officials.—
Lizzie Kane,
Chicago Tribune,
7 Aug. 2025
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The two men then said Smollett paid them to stage the attack, and Smollett was charged with filing a false police report; the charges were later dropped after Smollett paid a fine and did community service.—
Rick Porter,
HollywoodReporter,
6 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Happened.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/happened. Accessed 11 Apr. 2026.
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