hap·pen (h p  n)intr.v. hap·pened, hap·pen·ing, hap·pens 1. a. To come to pass. b. To come into being. 2. To take place or occur by chance. 3. To come upon something by chance. 4. To come or go casually; make an appearance. [Middle English happenen, from hap, chance; see hap.] Synonyms: happen, befall, betide, chance, occur These verbs mean to come about: saw an awful thing happen; predicted that misery will befall humankind; woe that betides the poor soldier; former friends who chanced to meet again; described the accident exactly as it occurred. |
happen [ˈhæpən]
vb
1. (intr) (of an event in time) to come about or take place; occur
2. (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
3. (tr) to chance (to be or do something) I happen to know him
4. (tr; takes a clause as object) to be the case, esp if by chance, that it happens that I know him
adv & sentence substitute
Northern English dialect
a. another word for perhaps
b. (as sentence modifier) happen I'll see thee tomorrow
[see hap1, -en1]
Usage: See at occur
ThesaurusLegend: Synonyms Related Words Antonyms
| Verb | 1. | happen - come to pass; "What is happening?"; "The meeting took place off without an incidence"; "Nothing occurred that seemed important" recrudesce, develop, break - happen; "Report the news as it develops"; "These political movements recrudesce from time to time" result - come about or follow as a consequence; "nothing will result from this meeting" intervene - occur between other event or between certain points of time; "the war intervened between the birth of her two children" transpire - come about, happen, or occur; "Several important events transpired last week" give - occur; "what gives?" operate - happen; "What is going on in the minds of the people?" supervene - take place as an additional or unexpected development come - come to pass; arrive, as in due course; "The first success came three days later"; "It came as a shock"; "Dawn comes early in June" fall - occur at a specified time or place; "Christmas falls on a Monday this year"; "The accent falls on the first syllable" anticipate - be a forerunner of or occur earlier than; "This composition anticipates Impressionism" develop - be gradually disclosed or unfolded; become manifest; "The plot developed slowly"; roll around, come around - happen regularly; "Christmas rolled around again" bechance, befall, happen - happen, occur, or be the case in the course of events or by chance; "It happens that today is my birthday"; "These things befell" (Santayana) bechance, befall, betide - become of; happen to; "He promised that no harm would befall her"; "What has become of my children?" backfire, backlash, recoil - come back to the originator of an action with an undesired effect; "Your comments may backfire and cause you a lot of trouble" chance - be the case by chance; "I chanced to meet my old friend in the street" break - happen or take place; "Things have been breaking pretty well for us in the past few months" fall, shine, strike - touch or seem as if touching visually or audibly; "Light fell on her face"; "The sun shone on the fields"; "The light struck the golden necklace"; "A strange sound struck my ears" turn out - prove to be in the result or end; "It turns out that he was right" |
| 2. | happen - happen, occur, or be the case in the course of events or by chance; "It happens that today is my birthday"; "These things befell" (Santayana) hap, happen, occur, come about, take place, go on, pass off, fall out, pass - come to pass; "What is happening?"; "The meeting took place off without an incidence"; "Nothing occurred that seemed important" happen - chance to be or do something, without intention or causation; "I happen to have just what you need!" | |
| 3. | happen - chance to be or do something, without intention or causation; "I happen to have just what you need!" bechance, befall, happen - happen, occur, or be the case in the course of events or by chance; "It happens that today is my birthday"; "These things befell" (Santayana) chance - be the case by chance; "I chanced to meet my old friend in the street" | |
| 4. | happen - come into being; become reality; "Her dream really materialized" hap, happen, occur, come about, take place, go on, pass off, fall out, pass - come to pass; "What is happening?"; "The meeting took place off without an incidence"; "Nothing occurred that seemed important" | |
| 5. | happen - come upon, as if by accident; meet with; "We find this idea in Plato"; "I happened upon the most wonderful bakery not very far from here"; "She chanced upon an interesting book in the bookstore the other day" |
happen
verb
1. occur, take place, come about, follow, result, appear, develop, arise, come off (informal), ensue, crop up (informal), transpire (informal), materialize, present itself, come to pass, see the light of day, eventuate We cannot say for sure what will happen.
2. chance, turn out (informal), have the fortune to be I looked in the nearest paper, which happened to be the Daily Mail.
happen on or upon something find, encounter, run into, come upon, turn up, stumble on, hit upon, chance upon, light upon, blunder on, discover unexpectedly He just happened upon a charming guest house.
Translations
happen [ˈhæpən] VI
1. (= occur) → pasar, ocurrir, suceder
what's happening? → ¿qué pasa or ocurre or sucede?
how did it happen? → ¿cómo pasó or ocurrió or sucedió?, ¿cómo fue?
these things happen → estas cosas pasan, son cosas que pasan
when did the accident happen? → ¿cuándo ocurrió or sucedió el accidente?
whatever happens → pase lo que pase
don't let it happen again → que no vuelva a ocurrir
as if nothing had happened → como si nada, como si tal cosa
how does it happen that ...? → ¿cómo es posible que ...? + subjun
what has happened to him? (= befall) → ¿qué le ha pasado?; (= become of) → ¿qué ha sido de él?
it's the best thing that ever happened to me → es lo mejor que me ha pasado en la vida
if anything should happen to him → si le pasara algo ...
it's all happening here → aquí es donde está la movida or marcha
see also accident
what's happening? → ¿qué pasa or ocurre or sucede?
how did it happen? → ¿cómo pasó or ocurrió or sucedió?, ¿cómo fue?
these things happen → estas cosas pasan, son cosas que pasan
when did the accident happen? → ¿cuándo ocurrió or sucedió el accidente?
whatever happens → pase lo que pase
don't let it happen again → que no vuelva a ocurrir
as if nothing had happened → como si nada, como si tal cosa
how does it happen that ...? → ¿cómo es posible que ...? + subjun
what has happened to him? (= befall) → ¿qué le ha pasado?; (= become of) → ¿qué ha sido de él?
it's the best thing that ever happened to me → es lo mejor que me ha pasado en la vida
if anything should happen to him → si le pasara algo ...
it's all happening here → aquí es donde está la movida or marcha
see also accident
2. (= chance) it happened that I was out that day → dio la casualidad de que or resulta que aquel día estuve fuera
it might happen that no one turns up → puede ocurrir que no venga nadie
if you happen to see John, let him know → si acaso vieras a John or si da la casualidad de que ves a John, díselo
I happen to know that → da la casualidad de que sé que ...
he just happens to be here now → da la casualidad de que está aquí ahora
if anyone should happen to see you → si acaso alguien te viera
would you happen to have a pen? → ¿no tendrá un bolígrafo por casualidad?
it happens to be true → da la casualidad de que es verdad
as it happens ...,; it (just) so happens that → da la casualidad de que ...
I do know him, as it happens → pues da la casualidad de que sí le conozco
it might happen that no one turns up → puede ocurrir que no venga nadie
if you happen to see John, let him know → si acaso vieras a John or si da la casualidad de que ves a John, díselo
I happen to know that → da la casualidad de que sé que ...
he just happens to be here now → da la casualidad de que está aquí ahora
if anyone should happen to see you → si acaso alguien te viera
would you happen to have a pen? → ¿no tendrá un bolígrafo por casualidad?
it happens to be true → da la casualidad de que es verdad
as it happens ...,; it (just) so happens that → da la casualidad de que ...
I do know him, as it happens → pues da la casualidad de que sí le conozco
happen along VI + ADV → aparecer
who should happen along but Sheila → quién dirías que apareció, pues Sheila
who should happen along but Sheila → quién dirías que apareció, pues Sheila
happen on happen upon VI + PREP [+ thing] → dar con, encontrar; [+ person] → tropezar con, encontrarse con
we happened (up)on this gem of a hotel in Ireland → dimos con or encontramos un hotel magnífico en Irlanda
to happen (up)on the solution → dar con or encontrar la solución
we happened (up)on this gem of a hotel in Ireland → dimos con or encontramos un hotel magnífico en Irlanda
to happen (up)on the solution → dar con or encontrar la solución
happen [ˈhæpən] vi (= occur) → arriver, se passer
Tell me what happened → Dis-moi ce qui s'est passé.
what's happening? → qu'est-ce qui se passe?, que se passe-t-il?
what's happened? → qu'est-ce qui s'est passé?, que s'est-il passé?
what will happen if ...? → qu'est-ce qui se passera si ...?, que se passera-t-il si ...?
nothing happened → il ne s'est rien passé
whatever happens → quoi qu'il arrive
to happen again
It won't happen again → Cela ne se reproduira plus.
to have happened before
I have seen this happen before → Ça s'est déjà produit auparavant.
these things happen → ça arrive
accidents will happen, accidents happen → on ne peut pas tout prévoir
see also accident
Tell me what happened → Dis-moi ce qui s'est passé.
what's happening? → qu'est-ce qui se passe?, que se passe-t-il?
what's happened? → qu'est-ce qui s'est passé?, que s'est-il passé?
what will happen if ...? → qu'est-ce qui se passera si ...?, que se passera-t-il si ...?
nothing happened → il ne s'est rien passé
whatever happens → quoi qu'il arrive
to happen again
It won't happen again → Cela ne se reproduira plus.
to have happened before
I have seen this happen before → Ça s'est déjà produit auparavant.
these things happen → ça arrive
accidents will happen, accidents happen → on ne peut pas tout prévoir
see also accident
(= befall) to happen to sb/sth
If anything happened to him → S'il lui arrivait quoi que ce soit ...
If anything happens to my sister → S'il arrive quoi que ce soit à ma sœur ...
If anything happens to the car → S'il arrive quoi que ce soit à la voiture ...
It's the best thing that ever happened to me → C'est la meilleure chose qui me soit jamais arrivée.
what happened to you? → qu'est-ce qui t'es arrivé?, que t'est-il arrivé?
what has happened to him? (= become of) → qu'est-ce qu'il est devenu?, qu'est-il devenu? (= occur to) → qu'est-ce qui lui est arrivé?, que lui est-il arrivé?
it couldn't happen to a nicer person → il le mérite bien (or elle le mérite bien or tu le mérites bien)
If anything happened to him → S'il lui arrivait quoi que ce soit ...
If anything happens to my sister → S'il arrive quoi que ce soit à ma sœur ...
If anything happens to the car → S'il arrive quoi que ce soit à la voiture ...
It's the best thing that ever happened to me → C'est la meilleure chose qui me soit jamais arrivée.
what happened to you? → qu'est-ce qui t'es arrivé?, que t'est-il arrivé?
what has happened to him? (= become of) → qu'est-ce qu'il est devenu?, qu'est-il devenu? (= occur to) → qu'est-ce qui lui est arrivé?, que lui est-il arrivé?
it couldn't happen to a nicer person → il le mérite bien (or elle le mérite bien or tu le mérites bien)
(by chance) to happen to do sth
I happened to bump into him in a shop → Il se trouve que l'ai rencontré dans un magasin.
She happened to be free that afternoon → Il se trouva qu'elle était libre cet après-midi-là.
If you happen to see Jane, ask her to phone me → Si jamais tu vois Jane, demande-lui de me téléphoner.
Do you happen to know the name of her secretary? → Connaîtriez-vous par hasard le nom de sa secrétaire?
You don't happen to know the postal code for Swindon? → Tu ne saurais pas, par hasard, le code postal de Swindon?
I happen to know he's lying → Je sais qu'en fait il ment.
as it happens → justement
As it happens, I don't want to go → Justement, je ne veux pas y aller.
I happened to bump into him in a shop → Il se trouve que l'ai rencontré dans un magasin.
She happened to be free that afternoon → Il se trouva qu'elle était libre cet après-midi-là.
If you happen to see Jane, ask her to phone me → Si jamais tu vois Jane, demande-lui de me téléphoner.
Do you happen to know the name of her secretary? → Connaîtriez-vous par hasard le nom de sa secrétaire?
You don't happen to know the postal code for Swindon? → Tu ne saurais pas, par hasard, le code postal de Swindon?
I happen to know he's lying → Je sais qu'en fait il ment.
as it happens → justement
As it happens, I don't want to go → Justement, je ne veux pas y aller.
happen on
happen upon vt fus (= come across by chance) → tomber surhappen1
happen2
vi
(= occur) → geschehen; (somewhat special or important event) → sich ereignen; (esp unexpected, unintentional or unpleasant event) → passieren, geschehen; (process also) → vor sich gehen, geschehen; it happened like this … → es geschah or war so …; nothing ever happens here → hier ereignet sich or geschieht or passiert (doch) überhaupt nie etwas; this interview/conversation never happened → dieses Interview/Gespräch hat nicht stattgefunden; it’s all happening here today → heute ist hier ganz schön was los (inf); what’s happening? → was läuft? (inf), → was ist los?; you can’t just let things happen → du kannst die Dinge nicht einfach laufen lassen; it’s broken, how did it happen? → es ist kaputt, wie ist denn das passiert?; it just happened → es ist (ganz) von allein passiert or gekommen; as if nothing had happened → als ob nichts geschehen or gewesen wäre; worse things have happened → es ist schon Schlimmeres passiert or vorgekommen; don’t let it happen again → dass das nicht noch mal vorkommt or passiert!; these things happen → so was kommt (schon mal) vor; what has happened to him? → was ist ihm passiert or geschehen?; (= what have they done to him) → was ist mit ihm passiert?; (= what’s wrong with him) → was ist mit ihm los?; (= what has become of him) → was ist aus ihm geworden?; what’s happened to your leg? → was ist mit deinem Bein los or passiert?; if anything should happen to me → wenn mir etwas zustoßen or passieren sollte; you’re the best thing that’s ever happened to me → du bist der größte Glücksfall in meinem Leben; it all happened so quickly → es ging alles so schnell
(= chance) how does it happen that …? (cause) → wie kommt es, dass …?; (possibility) → wie ist es möglich, dass …?; it might happen that you will be asked such a question → es könnte passieren or sein, dass Ihnen solch eine Frage gestellt wird; to happen to do something → zufällig(erweise) etw tun; we happened to discover we had a friend in common → wir stellten durch Zufall fest, dass wir einen gemeinsamen Bekannten hatten; do you happen to know whether …? → wissen Sie vielleicht or zufällig, ob …?; I happen to know it’s true → ich weiß zufällig(erweise), dass es stimmt; I just happened to come along when … → ich kam zufällig (gerade) vorbei, als …; he happened to see me just as I … → muss er mich doch gerade in dem Augenblick sehen, als ich …; I picked up the nearest paper, which happened to be the Daily Mail → ich nahm die erstbeste Zeitung zur Hand, es war zufällig die Daily Mail; it so happens or as it happens I (don’t) like that kind of thing → so etwas mag ich nun einmal (nicht); as it happens I’ve been there too/I’m going there today → zufällig(erweise) bin ich auch dort gewesen/gehe ich heute (dort)hin; you don’t want to come, do you? — it so happens, I do → du möchtest doch sicher nicht kommen, oder? — doch, natürlich
happen2
adv (N Engl inf: = perhaps) → vielleicht
happen [ˈhæp/ən] vi
happen [ˈhæp/ən] vi
a. → succedere, accadere, capitare
what's happening? → cosa succede?, cosa sta succedendo?
these things will happen → sono cose che capitano or succedono
don't let it happen again → che non si ripeta or succeda mai più
as if nothing had happened → come se niente fosse
what has happened to him? (befallen) → cosa gli è successo? (become of) → che fine ha fatto?
if anything should happen to him ... → se gli dovesse accadere qualcosa...
what's happening? → cosa succede?, cosa sta succedendo?
these things will happen → sono cose che capitano or succedono
don't let it happen again → che non si ripeta or succeda mai più
as if nothing had happened → come se niente fosse
what has happened to him? (befallen) → cosa gli è successo? (become of) → che fine ha fatto?
if anything should happen to him ... → se gli dovesse accadere qualcosa...
b. (chance) it happened that ... → si dava il caso che...
do you happen to know if ... → sai per caso se...
if anyone should happen to see John → se a qualcuno capita di vedere John
I happen to know that ... → si dà il caso che io sappia che...
she happened to be free → per caso era libera
as it happens → (per) combinazione
it so happened that ... → guarda caso...
do you happen to know if ... → sai per caso se...
if anyone should happen to see John → se a qualcuno capita di vedere John
I happen to know that ... → si dà il caso che io sappia che...
she happened to be free → per caso era libera
as it happens → (per) combinazione
it so happened that ... → guarda caso...
happen (up)on vi + prep → imbattersi in
happen [ˈhæp/ən] vi
a. → succedere, accadere, capitare
what's happening? → cosa succede?, cosa sta succedendo?
these things will happen → sono cose che capitano or succedono
don't let it happen again → che non si ripeta or succeda mai più
as if nothing had happened → come se niente fosse
what has happened to him? (befallen) → cosa gli è successo? (become of) → che fine ha fatto?
if anything should happen to him ... → se gli dovesse accadere qualcosa...
what's happening? → cosa succede?, cosa sta succedendo?
these things will happen → sono cose che capitano or succedono
don't let it happen again → che non si ripeta or succeda mai più
as if nothing had happened → come se niente fosse
what has happened to him? (befallen) → cosa gli è successo? (become of) → che fine ha fatto?
if anything should happen to him ... → se gli dovesse accadere qualcosa...
b. (chance) it happened that ... → si dava il caso che...
do you happen to know if ... → sai per caso se...
if anyone should happen to see John → se a qualcuno capita di vedere John
I happen to know that ... → si dà il caso che io sappia che...
she happened to be free → per caso era libera
as it happens → (per) combinazione
it so happened that ... → guarda caso...
do you happen to know if ... → sai per caso se...
if anyone should happen to see John → se a qualcuno capita di vedere John
I happen to know that ... → si dà il caso che io sappia che...
she happened to be free → per caso era libera
as it happens → (per) combinazione
it so happened that ... → guarda caso...
happen (up)on vi + prep → imbattersi in
v happen [ˈhӕpən]
1 to take place or occur; to occur by chance What happened next?; It just so happens / As it happens, I have the key in my pocket. gebeur يَحْدُث случвам се stát se; náhodou ske geschehen συμβαίνω ocurrir, pasar, acontecer juhtuma اتفاق افتادن tapahtua arriver לִקרוֹת घटित होना dogoditi se, zbiti se, desiti se (meg)történik terjadi gerast, eiga sér stað; vera (það vill svo til{{TH}}.{{TH}}.{{TH}}.) succedere 起こる 우연히 발생하다 įvykti, atsitikti notikt; nejauši gadīties kebetulan (toevallig) gebeuren, plaatsvinden skje, hende zdarzyć się acontecer a se întâmpla случаться stať sa náhodou zgoditi se dogoditi se hända, ske, falla sig เกิดขึ้น olmak 發生，偶發 відбуватися واقع ہونا، اتفاقا ہونا xảy ra （偶然）发生
2 (usually withto) to be done to (a person, thing etc) She's late – something must have happened to her. gebeur يَحْدُثُ لِ случвам се на přihodit se ske passieren συμβαίνω, τυχαίνω σε κπ. pasarle/ocurrirle/acontecerle (a alguien/algo) juhtuma تفاقي براي كسي افتادن tapahtua arriver à לִקרוֹת לְ- संयोग होना dogoditi se történik terjadi koma fyrir, henda succedere 起こる (어떤 일이) 생기다 atsitikti notikt terjadi gebeuren met of aan skje, inntreffe przydarzyć się acontecer a se întâmpla случаться stať sa pripetiti se dogoditi se hända, inträffa เกิดขึ้น başına gelmek 發生(在某人身上或某物上) ставатися, траплятися کچھ صورت حال ہونا cái gì đã xảy ra với người/vật 发生
3 to do or be by chance I happened to find him; He happens to be my friend. het toevallig, is toevallig يَحْدُثُ بالصُّدْفَه правя случайно náhodou se stát, ukázat se tilfældigvis være zufällig geschehen τυχαίνω dar la casualidad; resultar que juhtuma اتفاقآ برخوردن sattua le hasard a voulu que, il se trouve que לְהִזדַמֵן संयोग से होना slucajno se dogoditi, biti negdje véletlenül (tesz vmit), történetesen kebetulan vilja til, rekast á avere la fortuna di たまたま～する 우연히 …하다 atsitiktinai ką padaryti/būti izrādīties, gadīties kebetulan toevallig gebeuren, toevallig zijn van iets slumpe til å tak się składa, że; przypadkowo coś zrobić acontecer a se întâmpla случайно оказываться náhodou nájsť, ukázať sa slučajno... slučajno biti råka พบโดยบังเอิญ tesadüfen olmak 碰巧發生 виявлятися اتفاقا کچھ ہونا tình cờ 碰巧
n happening
an occurrence strange happenings. gebeurtenis, gebeure حَدَثٌ случка událost begivenhed; happening das Ereignis συμβάν acontecimiento sündmus رويداد tapahtuma événement אֵירוּע घटना dogadanje esemény kejadian. atburður, viðburður avvenimento 出来事 우발적인 사건 atsitikimas notikums kejadian gebeurtenis, het gebeuren hendelse, begivenhet wydarzenie acontecimento eveniment событие udalosť dogodek događaj händelse ปรากฏการณ์ olay 事件 пощастити واقعات sự kiện 事件
happen (up)on
to find by chance He happened upon the perfect solution to the problem just as he was about to give up his research. op ... afkom, teëkom يَجِد بالصُّدْفَه натъкваМ се на připadnout na falde over stoßen auf βρίσκω τυχαία dar con peale sattuma بطور اتفاقی یافتن löytää sattumalta tomber sur פָּגַש בְּמִקרֶה संयोग से प्राप्त करना या मिलना slucajno naici (namjeriti) na vkire, vmire bukkan menemukan finna fyrir tilviljun, detta niður á incontrare/trovare per caso 偶然出くわす 우연히 알게 되다 atsitiktinai rasti/užeiti/užtikti nejauši atrast terjumpa toevallig vinden komme over, råke, dumpe borti natknąć się, natrafić dar com a da peste (случайно) натолкнуться náhodou prísť na slučajno naleteti na naići slučajno råka på พบโดยบังเอิญ şans eseri bulmak 碰巧發現 випадково знайти اتفاقا مل جانا ngẫu nhiên tìm ra 偶然看到
happen → يَحْدُث udát (se) ske geschehen συμβαίνω ocurrir tapahtua se passer dogoditi se accadere 起こる 일어나다 gebeuren hende zdarzyć się acontecer случаться hända เกิดขึ้น olmak xảy ra 发生
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