happen
verb (used without object)
to take place; come to pass; occur.
was happening
-
past progressiveof happen.past progressive
Used to describe an ongoing action or continuous state that was happening at a specific time in the past.
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.
Although researchers could measure the current passing through the molecule, they needed simulations to determine what was happening at such an extraordinarily small scale.
From Science Daily ● Nov. 1, 2026
"They worked. We checked. They could see what was happening," Puente confirmed.
From BBC ● Oct. 31, 2026
"You have to make sure you read every packet of everything, and you couldn't eat anything until you got home so that you were safe and you were sure of what was happening," she said.
From BBC ● Oct. 31, 2026
About 20 minutes later, team captain Christian Yelich finally made his way into the clubhouse, still in awe of what was happening in the stands.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 27, 2026
I looked around at the others for a hint as to what was happening.
From "The Hiding Place" by Corrie ten Boom
