as in encountering
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
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for happening (upon)
Verb
-
The shocking clip shows 27-year-old Emily Marzilli and friends encountering a hungry Bryde's whale while swimming near a school of sardines.—
Kelli Bender,
PEOPLE,
6 Jan. 2026 -
Each episode finds Xena (Lawless) and her companion Gabrielle (Renee O'Connor) encountering characters from both history and mythology.—
James Mercadante,
Entertainment Weekly,
4 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
After meeting while training as actors, Graham and his wife, English actress Hannah Walters, married in 2008.—
Yasmeen Hamadeh,
PEOPLE,
12 Jan. 2026
-
Byrne and Cannavale began dating in 2012 after meeting through mutual friends.—
Emlyn Travis,
Entertainment Weekly,
11 Jan. 2026
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.
Cite this Entry
“Happening (upon).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/happening%20%28upon%29. Accessed 13 Jan. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share