1
as in to meet
to come upon face-to-face or as if face-to-face
quite unexpectedly encountered our next-door neighbor while vacationing in Europe
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to find
to come upon unexpectedly or by chance
we encountered a host of unforeseen problems during the restoration of our 200-year-old house
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of encounter
Catherine Pearson, New York Times, 14 Feb. 2025
If the robot does encounter a problem, the app will tell you how to fix it.
—Larry Magid, The Mercury News, 13 Feb. 2025
Abigail Adams, People.com, 13 Feb. 2025
Before their league encounter in 2011, the police decided to put in place precautions to minimise the risk of violence.
—Roshane Thomas, The Athletic, 13 Feb. 2025
See all Example Sentences for encounter 
Verb
More than 1,000 people wrote in about the electric chance encounters and deep love that slipped through their fingers.
—Catherine Pearson, New York Times, 14 Feb. 2025
If the robot does encounter a problem, the app will tell you how to fix it.
—Larry Magid, The Mercury News, 13 Feb. 2025
Noun
But the close encounter has not stopped Wells from returning to the water.
—Abigail Adams, People.com, 13 Feb. 2025
Before their league encounter in 2011, the police decided to put in place precautions to minimise the risk of violence.
—Roshane Thomas, The Athletic, 13 Feb. 2025
See all Example Sentences for encounter
Recent Examples of Synonyms for encounter
Verb
-
The title race in La Liga is set to remain a tight battle, after the top two met at the Estadio Santiago Bernabéu on Saturday night to play out a draw as Real Madrd fought back to cancel out Atlético Madrid’s first-half lead and take away a point each with a 1-1 tie.—
Sam Leveridge,
Forbes,
8 Feb. 2025
-
The two pool winners meet the following week for the Open Division title.—
Eric Sondheimer,
Los Angeles Times,
8 Feb. 2025
Verb
-
In addition, district officials have found that attendance has improved for both students and staff with a four-day week.—
Amy Wilde,
Twin Cities,
7 Feb. 2025
-
After two and four months the researchers checked back in and found evidence of successful teeth growth in around 50% of the pigs.—
Mack DeGeurin,
Popular Science,
7 Feb. 2025
Verb
-
But as major European allies face economic woes, maintaining the flow of funds and weapons in the long run will be a struggle, especially if the United States scales back its sizable chunk of military aid.—
Isabelle Khurshudyan and Ellen Francis The Washington Post,
arkansasonline.com,
9 Feb. 2025
-
The Chiefs, who secured the AFC’s No. 1 seed, face perhaps their toughest Super Bowl challenge of the Patrick Mahomes era.—
Jenzia Burgos,
StyleCaster,
9 Feb. 2025
Noun
-
The move immediately became a key skirmish in Mr. Musk’s wider war on the federal bureaucracy.—
Chris Cameron,
New York Times,
4 Feb. 2025
-
The development is just the latest skirmish in a decades-long war that cyclists have waged to legally ride the trails in mountain biking’s birthplace.—
Maureen Gaffney,
Outside Online,
30 Jan. 2025
Verb
-
Then, in November, with the election of Donald Trump and the Republicans’ return to power in Congress, the question of how best to respond to opioid-use disorder was confronted with new uncertainty.—
Moises Velasquez-Manoff Robert Petkoff Emma Kehlbeck Zak Mouton,
New York Times,
16 Feb. 2025
-
On the internet, you are confronted with different perspectives on reality.—
Georg Szalai,
The Hollywood Reporter,
16 Feb. 2025
Noun
-
Caleb has disappeared from the internet almost entirely since his brief brush with fame and shame.—
Kelsey McKinney,
Rolling Stone,
8 Feb. 2025
-
Expect up to 24 hours of clump-free, smudge-resistant wear thanks to an even-coating brush with multi-level bristles that catch lashes of all lengths.—
Jennifer Hussein,
Allure,
7 Feb. 2025
Verb
-
Noticing this, Knicks center Karl-Anthony Towns tapped his shoulder and pointed toward a corner of the stands, where a fan wearing a No. 15 Nuggets jersey was trying to catch Jokic’s attention.—
Bennett Durando,
The Denver Post,
16 Feb. 2025
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Crum learned about the medium-sized brown-and-white dog earlier this month but soon discovered Ariel wouldn't be easy to catch.—
Josh Hammer,
Newsweek,
16 Feb. 2025
Noun
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The incident may have started as a fight inside a local McDonald’s restaurant, which then spilled out onto the street, according to a police source.—
Kerry Burke,
New York Daily News,
15 Feb. 2025
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Transport boxes, electronic scales and gaffs, sharp blades that can be attached to roosters' legs during fights, were found on the property, the news statement said.—
Kerry Breen,
CBS News,
15 Feb. 2025
Thesaurus Entries Near encounter
Cite this Entry
“Encounter.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/encounter. Accessed 21 Feb. 2025.
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