occur

[ uh-kur ]

/ əˈkɜr /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR occur ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used without object), oc·curred, oc·cur·ring.

to happen; take place; come to pass: When did the accident occur?

to be met with or found; present itself; appear.

to suggest itself in thought; come to mind (usually followed by to): An idea occurred to me.

Nearby words

occupational safety and health administration, occupational therapy, occupied territories, occupier, occupy, occur, occur to one, occurrence, occurrent, occy, ocd

Origin of occur

1520–30; < Latin occurrere to run to meet, arrive, meet, equivalent to oc- oc- + currere to run

SYNONYMS FOR occur

1 befall. See happen.

2 arise, offer.

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR occur ON THESAURUS.COM

Related forms

pre·oc·cur, verb (used without object), pre·oc·curred, pre·oc·cur·ring.re·oc·cur, verb (used without object), re·oc·curred, re·oc·cur·ring.un·oc·cur·ring, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for occur

Eating disorders, on the other hand, are driven largely by biological processes that occur on the inside.
How Skinny Is Too Skinny? Israel Bans ‘Underweight’ Models|Carrie Arnold|January 8, 2015|DAILY BEAST
But one extra trick would instantly solve the problem of crashes that occur over water.
Red Tape and Black Boxes: Why We Keep ‘Losing’ Airliners in 2014|Clive Irving|December 29, 2014|DAILY BEAST
They maintain that the initial radicalization tends to occur offline before it is then reinforced online.
ISIS Has a Message. Do We?|Jamie Dettmer|December 8, 2014|DAILY BEAST
We, on the other hand, on the police side, will naturally gear up to deal with any potential contingency that might occur.
After No Indictment for Eric Garner Killer, Is NYC the Next Ferguson?|Jacob Siegel|December 3, 2014|DAILY BEAST

Diagnosis of CTE is often considered to be specialized and has to occur at a designated institution like Boston University.
Will the NCAA Let Ohio State’s Kosta Karageorge Die in Vain?|Robert Silverman|December 1, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Much of the so-called gastric fermentation does not occur in the stomach but rather in the duodenum.
Dietetics for Nurses|Fairfax T. Proudfit
Such mistakes would not occur if the telegraphists were better paid.
The British State Telegraphs|Hugo Richard Meyer
The deposits are silver-lead, and they occur along the contact between approximately horizontal limestones and slates.
De Re Metallica|Georgius Agricola
Sometimes, indeed, it did occur to him that he could not be a luggage boy all his lifetime.
Ben, the Luggage Boy;|Horatio Alger
It did not occur to him that her appeal and his instant response to it were as old as the race.
An Alabaster Box|Mary E. Wilkins Freeman and Florence Morse Kingsley

British Dictionary definitions for occur

occur

/ (əˈkɜː) /

verb -curs, -curring or -curred (intr)

to happen; take place; come about

to be found or be present; exist

(foll by to) to be realized or thought of (by); suggest itself (to)

Word Origin for occur

C16: from Latin occurrere to run up to, from ob- to + currere to run

usage

It is usually regarded as incorrect to talk of pre-arranged events occurring or happening : the wedding took place (not occurred or happened) in the afternoon

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