happen by

British

verb

informal (intr, adverb) to appear, arrive, or come casually or by chance

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Example Sentences

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See Examples For:

happen by

Enabling most close races to be called by the Friday after election day by providing more precise data on unprocessed ballots in those contests, Alexander said, is also not likely to happen by November.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 27, 2026

The finding is a shift from past U.S. warnings that an invasion could happen by 2027.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 19, 2026

That journey can happen in your own town and, sure, it can happen by taking vacations.

From MarketWatch ● Mar. 10, 2026

That depth — and the way it’s been flattened abroad — didn’t happen by accident.

From Salon ● Jan. 24, 2026

I can make this happen by tying off the cable to the rear of the trailer and towing with the rover.

From "The Martian" by Andy Weir

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023