as in occurred
to take place
did anything exciting happen over the summer?
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of happened
The same thing happened with Simply Grand Kitchen and Creamery, which is directly next door to Dunn Deal.
—
Kansas City Star, 30 Apr. 2026
If two Republican state senators had voted differently and done right by the people, a massive and legally dubious redrawing of Florida congressional districts would never have happened.
—Sun Sentinel Editorial Board, Sun Sentinel, 30 Apr. 2026
The company opted to keep it in place although the separation never happened.
—Jill Goldsmith, Deadline, 30 Apr. 2026
The album came out and we were meant to tour, and then obviously Covid happened, so that didn’t happen.
—Larisha Paul, Rolling Stone, 30 Apr. 2026
The team had the opportunity to win three consecutive championships — something that hasn’t happened in UIL baseball since 1988.
—Charles Baggarly, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 30 Apr. 2026
That’s what happened with their trial.
—Chris Murphy, Vanity Fair, 30 Apr. 2026
Neither Virginia nor Cameron expected what happened next.
—Meghan O'Brien, NBC news, 30 Apr. 2026
The same thing happened last year at the Under-20 World Cup in Chile as Japanese fans cleaned up after a match.
—Stephen Wade, Chicago Tribune, 30 Apr. 2026
Kansas City Star, 30 Apr. 2026
If two Republican state senators had voted differently and done right by the people, a massive and legally dubious redrawing of Florida congressional districts would never have happened.
—Sun Sentinel Editorial Board, Sun Sentinel, 30 Apr. 2026
The company opted to keep it in place although the separation never happened.
—Jill Goldsmith, Deadline, 30 Apr. 2026
The album came out and we were meant to tour, and then obviously Covid happened, so that didn’t happen.
—Larisha Paul, Rolling Stone, 30 Apr. 2026
The team had the opportunity to win three consecutive championships — something that hasn’t happened in UIL baseball since 1988.
—Charles Baggarly, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 30 Apr. 2026
That’s what happened with their trial.
—Chris Murphy, Vanity Fair, 30 Apr. 2026
Neither Virginia nor Cameron expected what happened next.
—Meghan O'Brien, NBC news, 30 Apr. 2026
The same thing happened last year at the Under-20 World Cup in Chile as Japanese fans cleaned up after a match.
—Stephen Wade, Chicago Tribune, 30 Apr. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for happened
Verb
-
The commission also sent its findings to the Kane County state’s attorney, the Chicago Police Department and police departments in towns where other major immigration enforcement actions occurred, including Elgin, Franklin Park and Evanston, Pritzker said.—
Olivia Olander,
Chicago Tribune,
1 May 2026
-
Tap to unmute An error occurred.—
Steven Rosenbaum,
CBS News,
30 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
That came just a few days after news broke that Palantir had secured a $10 billion contract from the US Army over the next decade.—
Allison Morrow,
CNN Money,
7 Aug. 2025
-
All five of Bednar’s outs came via strikeout on Wednesday.—
Brendan Kuty,
New York Times,
7 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
After Monday night’s Game 4 victory, there was no bravado, no declarations and no viral sound bites waiting to be misinterpreted.—
Mike Bianchi,
The Orlando Sentinel,
28 Apr. 2026
-
There was no comedian present (there was, however, a mentalist) for this year’s White House Correspondents’ Dinner, but that didn’t stop Jimmy Kimmel from presenting his alternative version of what his WHCD monologue might look like on his Thursday, April 23, show.—
Fran Hoepfner,
Vulture,
27 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Johnson’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment Wednesday, nor did HUD officials.—
Lizzie Kane,
Chicago Tribune,
7 Aug. 2025
-
The two men then said Smollett paid them to stage the attack, and Smollett was charged with filing a false police report; the charges were later dropped after Smollett paid a fine and did community service.—
Rick Porter,
HollywoodReporter,
6 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Happened.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/happened. Accessed 2 May. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
