encounter meaning and definition

ENCOUNTER noun

Definition of encounter (noun)

1. a minor short-term fight
   • synonyms: brush, clash, skirmish
2. a casual or unexpected convergence
   • "he still remembers their meeting in Paris"; "there was a brief encounter in the hallway"
   • synonyms: meeting
3. a casual meeting with a person or thing
   • synonyms: coming upon
4. a hostile disagreement face-to-face
   • synonyms: confrontation, face-off, showdown

ENCOUNTER verb

Definition of encounter (verb)

1. come together
   • "I'll probably see you at the meeting"; "How nice to see you again!"
   • synonyms: come across, meet, run across, run into, see
2. 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"
   • synonyms: bump, chance, find, happen
3. be beset by
   • "The project ran into numerous financial difficulties"
   • synonyms: run into
4. experience as a reaction
   • "My proposal met with much opposition"
   • synonyms: meet, receive
5. contend against an opponent in a sport, game, or battle
   • "Princeton plays Yale this weekend"; "Charlie likes to play Mary"
   • synonyms: meet, play, take on