happen
[ hap-uhn ]
/ ˈhæp ən /
Save This Word!
verb (used without object)
QUIZ
CAN YOU ANSWER THESE COMMON GRAMMAR DEBATES?
There are grammar debates that never die; and the ones highlighted in the questions in this quiz are sure to rile everyone up once again. Do you know how to answer the questions that cause some of the greatest grammar debates?
Question 1 of 7
Which sentence is correct?
Origin of happen
synonym study for happen
1. Happen, chance, occur refer to the taking place of an event. Happen, which originally denoted the taking place by hap or chance, is now the most general word for coming to pass: Something has happened. Chance suggests the accidental nature of an event: It chanced to rain that day. Occur is often interchangeable with happen, but is more formal, and is usually more specific as to time and event: His death occurred the following year.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use happen in a sentence
British Dictionary definitions for happen
happen
/ (ˈhæpən) /
verb
(intr) (of an event in time) to come about or take place; occur
(intr foll by to) (of some unforeseen circumstance or event, esp death), to fall to the lot (of); be a source of good or bad fortune (to)if anything happens to me, it'll be your fault
(tr) to chance (to be or do something)I happen to know him
(tr; takes a clause as object) to be the case, esp if by chance, thatit happens that I know him
adverb, sentence substitute
Northern English dialect
- another word for perhaps
- (as sentence modifier)happen I'll see thee tomorrow
Word Origin for happen
C14: see hap 1, -en 1
undefined happen
See occur
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