hit (upon)

Definition of hit (upon)next
as in to find
to come upon unexpectedly or by chance the popular belief that Sir Isaac Newton hit upon his understanding of gravity at the sight of an apple falling from a tree

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for hit (upon)
Verb
  • Officers at the scene found a man who had been hit by a fleeing vehicle.
    Nicholas Lentz, CBS News, 10 Aug. 2026
  • Sometimes poison ivy will creep into beds from nearby woodlands, but these plants can also find their way into flower beds via seeds dropped by birds.
    Lauren Landers, Better Homes & Gardens, 10 Aug. 2026
Verb
  • Iraola could even encounter some of the same issues that stumped Slot last season.
    Graham Ruthven, New York Times, 7 Aug. 2026
  • Neighbouring Devon should also encounter a high percentage of coverage, while people in Pembrokeshire, Wales, are set to see up to 94% of the sun eclipsed.
    Callum Sutherland, Time, 7 Aug. 2026
Verb
  • Lead vocalist Jacob Bannon came across the phenomenon when researching his own tinnitus and reimagined it as a culmination of all the pain and suffering in human existence.
    Alex Robert Ross, Pitchfork, 24 June 2026
  • So Veena’s mother turned to the internet, came across a blog post about Real Love and spoke to the woman who wrote it, a mother whose son had been suicidal.
    Rich Schapiro, NBC news, 20 June 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.

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Cite this Entry

“Hit (upon).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hit%20%28upon%29. Accessed 14 Aug. 2026.

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