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.
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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
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encounters
plural
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a meeting with a person or thing, especially a casual, unexpected, or brief meeting.
Our running into each other was merely a chance encounter.
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a meeting of persons or groups that are in conflict or opposition; combat; battle.
Another such encounter and we may lose the war.
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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
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to come upon or meet casually or unexpectedly
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to come into conflict with (an enemy, army, etc) in battle or contest
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(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
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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:
Previewing Sunday's derby encounter, Celtic great Scott Brown explained the importance of a fast start in this fixture.
From BBC ● Sep. 12, 2026
It is still gathering people, references, conversations and the occasional unexpected encounter, allowing each to leave some small trace behind.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 11, 2026
They argued that doctors may need to pay more attention to how much light their patients encounter at night, particularly among people already dealing with certain heart conditions.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 11, 2026
It does appear that mobile users generally encounter fewer captcha challenges than desktop users, Google’s Hemrajani says.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 8, 2026
Slowly, the bitterness of our Valentine’s encounter faded.
From "Bye Forever, I Guess" by Jodi Meadows
There have been around 1,300 shark incidents around Australia since 1791, of which more than 260 resulted in death, according to a database of their encounters with humans.
From Barron's ● Sep. 14, 2026
"I've been quite lucky not to have too many physical encounters whenever I've been playing, but one did stand out to me."
From BBC ● Sep. 10, 2026
Early encounters with Thornton Wilder’s “Our Town” and Tony Kushner’s “Angels in America” inspired him to pursue his economically precarious calling.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 9, 2026
Our revised route blessed us with hundreds of encounters with pilgrims.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 6, 2026
She said nothing during these encounters but watched us with hungry hawk eyes.
From "Chains" by Laurie Halse Anderson
We asked a few of them to share the lessons they learned from saving and juggling money priorities, and the surprises they encountered along the way.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 10, 2026
Garcetti positioned Los Angeles as a can-do alternative to the bureaucracy and resistance Lucas had encountered elsewhere.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 10, 2026
He said the property had not been the cleanest his team had encountered, but cockroaches could thrive anywhere there had been a food source, including abandoned food.
From BBC ● Sep. 9, 2026
Even so, PCE may continue to be encountered in certain products and industrial applications, particularly in countries that do not have comparable restrictions.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 7, 2026
It was louder than anything she had ever encountered.
From "A Girl Named Disaster" by Nancy Farmer
As L3Harris is now encountering, looking past misconduct allegations at previous employers can backfire.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 18, 2026
Thus far, this is not a problem the city reports encountering.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 14, 2026
In reality, Leavitt is without a doubt the worst White House press secretary that I’ve ever had the displeasure of encountering since the day I first met Larry Speakes during the Reagan administration.
From Salon ● Aug. 14, 2026
Although the attention remained positive, the level of excitement required heightened security, with some supporters even booking rooms in the same hotel in the hope of encountering players in lifts and public areas.
From BBC ● Aug. 9, 2026
At first Rondon resisted, figuring that they were out of the hills, so the chance of encountering impassable rapids was unlikely.
From "Death on the River of Doubt" by Samantha Seiple
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
