event

American  

[ih-vent] / ɪˈvɛnt /

noun

• events
  plural

1. 

   something that happens or is regarded as happening; an occurrence, especially one of some importance.

   Synonyms:

   circumstance, case, affair, happening

2. the outcome, issue, or result of anything.

   The venture had no successful event.

   Synonyms:

   consequence

3. something that occurs in a certain place during a particular interval of time.

4. Physics. in relativity, an occurrence that is sharply localized at a single point in space and instant of time.

5. Sports. any of the contests in a program made up of one sport or of a number of sports.

   The broad jump event followed the pole vault.

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idioms

1. in the event of, if there should be.

   In the event of rain, the party will be held indoors.

2. in any event, regardless of what happens; in any case. Also at all events.

3. in the event that, if it should happen that; in case.

   In the event that I can't come back by seven, you can eat without me.

event British  

/ ɪˈvɛnt /

noun

1. anything that takes place or happens, esp something important; happening; incident

2. the actual or final outcome; result (esp in the phrases in the event, after the event )

3. any one contest in a programme of sporting or other contests

   the high jump is his event

4. philosophy

   1. an occurrence regarded as a bare instant of space-time as contrasted with an object which fills space and has endurance

   2. an occurrence regarded in isolation from, or contrasted with, human agency Compare act

5. regardless of circumstances; in any case

6. in case of; if (such a thing) happens

   in the event of rain the race will be cancelled

7. if it should happen that

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verb

1. to take part or ride (a horse) in eventing

event More Idioms  

1. see blessed event; in any case (event); in case (in the event); in the unlikely event.

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Synonym Usage

Event, episode, incident, occurrence are terms for a happening. An event is usually an important happening: historical events. An episode is one of a series of happenings in a person's life or in a narrative: an episode in one's life. An incident is an event of usually minor importance: an amusing incident in a play. An occurrence is something that happens, often by surprise: His arrival was an unexpected occurrence.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• superevent
  noun
• eventless
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• events
  plural

Etymology

Origin of event

First recorded in 1560–70; from Latin ēventus “occurrence, outcome,” equivalent to ēven(īre) “to come out, fall out, occur” + -tus suffix of verbal action

Explanation

An event is something that happens, or might happen. In the event that you get stuck in traffic, the wedding will continue. It is too important an event to wait even for someone as important as you. When something is eventful, many things happen during it. In a detective story, a protagonist can protect himself by mailing an envelope to the police to be opened "in the event of his death." In the novel White Noise, Don DeLillo describes an Airborne Toxic Event, both predicting and mocking the disasters of our time.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

event events

The event was meant to herald Jaguar's future as a luxury all-electric marque, but it triggered a furious backlash in the press and on social media.

From BBC ● Oct. 7, 2026

Since that event in Miami two years ago, McGovern has left the company, JLR has parted ways with the agency behind the controversial rebranding campaign, and the company also has a new chief executive.

From BBC ● Oct. 7, 2026

One event that the chief justice did attend was the annual Hupper Island Independence Day picnic.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 6, 2026

“Our ambition here is to make this a global event that celebrates the biggest stars on television around the world,” Mike Hopkins, head of Prime Video and Amazon MGM Studios, said in an interview.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 6, 2026

“Until it’s back, this event is on hold.”

From "A Monster of a Mystery (The Hardy Boys: Secret Files, #5)" by Franklin W. Dixon

In the weeks following the June primary election, Becerra made himself scarce on the campaign trail and attended few public events.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 7, 2026

Those events could prompt the committee to this year choose a laureate who enjoys broad consensus, such as an individual or organisation working to protect children or humanitarian efforts.

From Barron's ● Oct. 7, 2026

Like its live sporting events, the free broadcast will allow Amazon to build a substantial global advertising footprint.

From BBC ● Oct. 6, 2026

Sporting events make up a large portion of the business: In June and July alone, sports trading volume on Kalshi was more than $58 billion, and on Polymarket it was nearly $22 billion, Pew found.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 6, 2026

Aboard the sub B-130, Captain Nikolai Shumkov gave his communications officer permission to break the rules and try to get some sort of update on world events.

From "Fallout: Spies, Superbombs, and the Ultimate Cold War Showdown" by Steve Sheinkin

Related Words

• accident
• act
• action
• affair
• appearance
• business
• case
• celebration
• ceremony
• circumstance
• crisis
• development
• episode
• experience
• fact
• holiday
• incident
• matter
• occasion
• situation