encounter
Americanverb (used with object)
-
encounters,
present (3rd person singular)
-
encountered,
past participle, past
-
encountering
present participle
-
to come upon or meet with, especially unexpectedly.
to encounter a new situation.
-
to meet with or contend against (difficulties, opposition, etc.).
We encounter so many problems in our work.
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to meet (a person, military force, etc.) in conflict.
We will encounter the enemy at dawn.
verb (used without object)
-
encounters,
present (3rd person singular)
-
encountered,
past participle, past
-
encountering
present participle
noun
-
encounters
plural
-
a meeting with a person or thing, especially a casual, unexpected, or brief meeting.
Our running into each other was merely a chance encounter.
-
a meeting of persons or groups that are in conflict or opposition; combat; battle.
Another such encounter and we may lose the war.
-
Psychology. a meeting of two or more people, as the members of an encounter group or a number of married couples marriage encounter, conducted to promote direct emotional confrontations among the participants, especially as a form of therapy encountertherapy.
verb
-
to come upon or meet casually or unexpectedly
-
to come into conflict with (an enemy, army, etc) in battle or contest
-
(tr) to be faced with; contend with
he encounters many obstacles in his work
noun
-
a meeting with a person or thing, esp when casual or unexpected
-
a hostile meeting; contest or conflict
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
encountersimple
-
encounterssimple
-
have encounteredperfect
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has encounteredperfect
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am encounteringprogressive
-
are encounteringprogressive
-
is encounteringprogressive
-
have been encounteringperfect progressive
-
has been encounteringperfect progressive
Past
-
encounteredsimple
-
had encounteredperfect
-
was encounteringprogressive
-
were encounteringprogressive
-
had been encounteringperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of encounter
First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English encountren, from Anglo-French enco(u)ntrer, from Vulgar Latin incontrāre (unrecorded), equivalent to in- in- 1 + -contrāre, verb suffix derived from contrā “against”; see counter 3
Explanation
If you run into that cute guy (or girl) from the local deli when you’re at the grocery store and you stop to chat, you’ve just had an encounter, which is a casual meeting, often resulting by chance. When you encounter the word encounter, context will tell you if it’s acting as a verb or a noun. The sentence “When Spencer and Susanna encounter a bear on the trail, they stand very still” illustrates the verb form. “The encounter in the subway left her wishing she had stayed at home” shows the noun form. Whether acting as a verb or a noun, the word carries the connotation of “chance meeting." You don’t plan an encounter; it just happens.
Vocabulary lists containing encounter
Against All Odds: Contra and Counter
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"Fears and Phobias," Vocabulary from the article
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Much Ado About Nothing
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Many people encounter them as children, making them among the most recognizable aquatic animals in North America.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 16, 2026
After the robots noisily clunked down the stairs, the strangeness of the encounter began to fade.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 16, 2026
If you scroll through Twitter, you might encounter Tanden engaging in a testy back-and-forth with progressive journalist Mehdi Hasan.
From Slate ● Oct. 15, 2026
Fernandes rarely misses a game but was left out of the recent Nations League encounter with Norway as national team boss Jorge Jesus said the former Sporting man was "playing through pain".
From BBC ● Oct. 13, 2026
As it was, events played out in a rather dramatic face-to-face encounter.
From "Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation" by Joseph J. Ellis
The Daily Telegraph leads with reports that RAF jets had two close encounters with unidentified drones earlier this year while they were completing training exercises over the North Sea.
From BBC ● Oct. 16, 2026
On the surface, it seems like harmless video game humor, and I’m sure we’ve all had encounters with actual humans that resembled interacting with tautological machines programmed with limited responses.
From Salon ● Oct. 12, 2026
But officials previously told The Times that postal employees have had other encounters with peacocks, and that the agency has been working with the Pasadena Humane Society regarding concerns involving the birds.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 2, 2026
One occurs relatively close to the galaxy, where the jet first encounters the CGM.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 30, 2026
And the tales of other Indians’ encounters with the strangers were alike in the same way.
From "1491" by Charles C. Mann
Later, it encountered a stray charging cord snaking across the ground as it vacuumed.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 16, 2026
Los Angeles County Museum of Art Chief Executive Michael Govan sees Ryan’s opportunity as different from the one Philbin encountered 25 years earlier.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 12, 2026
He said he had encountered people willing to compromise, but others who found it more difficult.
From BBC ● Oct. 10, 2026
"The early sympathy was very strong because Malaysians largely encountered the Rohingya through the language of persecution," said Khoo.
From Barron's ● Oct. 8, 2026
In April, a group of Inuit hunters encountered the battered Advance and its sickly crew.
From "American Spirits" by Barb Rosenstock
This behavior, known as one-dimensional pinning-free vortex flow, means the vortices can travel along a defined path without encountering the usual obstacles that restrict their movement.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 16, 2026
AST SpaceMobile’s plan to build the first space-based cellular broadband network is encountering major hurdles.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 13, 2026
But it cannot offer the particular surprise of encountering another person who has decided, for no reason other than the pleasure of it, to show me something strange and wonderful.
From Salon ● Oct. 11, 2026
The cast agree that the drama will appeal to both fans of the original and audiences encountering it for the first time.
From BBC ● Sep. 27, 2026
In areas such as the Great Plains of North America, where not a single wheat stalk grew 10,000 years ago, you can today walk for hundreds upon hundreds of miles without encountering any other plant.
From "Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind" by Yuval Noah Harari
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