Happen

3 definitions found

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  Happen \Hap"pen\ (h[a^]p"p'n), v. i. [imp. & p. p. {Happened}
     (-p'nd); p. pr. & vb. n. {Happening}.] [OE. happenen, hapnen.
     See {Hap} to happen.]
     1. To come by chance; to come without previous expectation;
        to fall out.
        [1913 Webster]


  
              There shall no evil happen to the just. --Prov. xii.
                                                    21.
        [1913 Webster]
  
     2. To take place; to occur.
        [1913 Webster]
  
              All these things which had happened.  --Luke xxiv.
                                                    14.
        [1913 Webster]
  
     {To happen on}, to meet with; to fall or light upon. "I have
        happened on some other accounts." --Graunt.
  
     {To happen in}, to make a casual call. [Colloq.]
        [1913 Webster]

From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]:

  happen
       v 1: come to pass; "What is happening?"; "The meeting took place
            off without an incidence"; "Nothing occurred that seemed
            important" [syn: {hap}, {go on}, {pass off}, {occur}, {pass},
             {fall out}, {come about}, {take place}]
       2: 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) [syn: {befall}, {bechance}]
       3: chance to be or do something, without intention or
          causation; "I happen to have just what you need!"
       4: come into being; become reality; "Her dream really
          materialized" [syn: {materialize}, {materialise}] [ant: {dematerialize},
           {dematerialize}]
       5: 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" [syn: {find}, {chance}, {bump},
           {encounter}]

From Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0 [moby-thes]:

  54 Moby Thesaurus words for "happen":
     be found, be met with, be realized, bechance, become of, befall,
     betide, break, bump, chance, come, come about, come along,
     come down, come off, come to pass, come true, come upon, cook,
     develop, do, encounter, eventuate, fall, fall out, find, give, go,
     go off, go on, hap, happen along, happen by chance, hazard, hit,
     light, luck, materialize, meet, meet with, occur, pass, pass off,
     pop up, prove, rise, stumble, stumble on, stumble upon, take place,
     transpire, tumble, turn out, turn up