happened (on or upon)

verb

past tense of happen (on or upon)
as in found
to come upon unexpectedly or by chance happened on the filming of a movie

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for happened (on or upon)
  1. found
  2. encountered
Verb
  • The beaches here are lined with colorful guesthouses and design-forward boutique stays like Jakes Hotel, a beloved family-run establishment founded by local artist Sally Henzell.
    — Megan Spurrell, Condé Nast Traveler, 13 Nov. 2026
  • Led by founding partners Mosaic Miami, Temple Beth Am and the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Miami, the potluck offers a sampling of religious traditions from Christian, Jewish, Muslim and Hindu faith leaders.
    — Lauren Costantino, Miami Herald, 13 Nov. 2026
Definition of found
Verb
  • In another incident in November 2021, a DJI Phantom 4 Pro encountered magnetic interference shortly after takeoff in Rugby, England.
    — Kaif Shaikh, Interesting Engineering, 8 Nov. 2026
  • The officers encountered a man in the SUV, and one of the officers reported seeing the man with a firearm, according to the KBI.
    — Kendrick Calfee, Kansas City Star, 7 Nov. 2026
Definition of encountered
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.

Browse Nearby Words

happened (by)
happened (on or upon)
happened (upon)
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Happened (on or upon).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/happened%20%28on%20or%20upon%29. Accessed 14 Nov. 2026.

Copy Citation
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

31 Useful Rhetorical Devices

More Commonly Misspelled Words

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Great Big List of Beautiful and Useless Words, Vol. 5

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

The Longest Long Words List

The Words of the Week - Nov. 13

Even More Bird Names that Sound Like Insults (and Sometimes Are)
See More

Popular

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

Great Big List of Beautiful and Useless Words, Vol. 5

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
speech-bubble-untangle
Simplify The Convoluted Expression Quiz A quiz that’s as “uncomplicated as a round de...
See All