ENCOUNTERED Synonyms: 58 Similar and Opposite Words

encountered

verb

past tense of encounter

as in met

to come upon face-to-face or as if face-to-face quite unexpectedly encountered our next-door neighbor while vacationing in Europe

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in found

to come upon unexpectedly or by chance we encountered a host of unforeseen problems during the restoration of our 200-year-old house

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as in faced

to enter into contest or conflict with the troops encountered bands of guerrilla fighters as they made their way across the desert

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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 encountered The crew made sure the water level wasn’t high enough to slosh around the inside of the aircraft, in case the plane encountered turbulence. — Lori Weisberg, San Diego Union-Tribune, 22 Aug. 2026 Reporters encountered zero officers during a two-and-a-half hour ride through uptown and South End last Saturday. — Charlotte Observer, 22 Aug. 2026 In Eagle-Vail, CPW is also investigating after a bear encountered a person at an apartment complex, resulting in a minor injury. — Spencer Wilson, CBS News, 21 Aug. 2026 The pair’s feud became public in 2021, when David encountered Dershowitz at the Chilmark General Store on Martha’s Vineyard. — Angelique Brenes, PEOPLE, 21 Aug. 2026 At 95%, most job seekers have encountered a suspicious job offer, and 98% said today's job market increases vulnerability to scams, a separate Monster report found. — Rachel Barber, USA Today, 21 Aug. 2026 Professors have encountered demonstrable issues with widespread cheating, with many forced to devise their own methods for eliminating unethical AI use. — Christopher Rim, Forbes.com, 21 Aug. 2026 Cottonmouths — semiaquatic snakes also known as water moccasins — are in the top three most commonly encountered venomous snakes in Arkansas, Davis said. — Devon Henderson, New York Times, 12 Aug. 2026 Zinn also lived through some of the absurdities that Yossarian encountered. — Literary Hub, 12 Aug. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for encountered

Verb

On Sunday, Roman Goffman, the chief of Israel’s Mossad intelligence agency, met again with Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani in Jordan to ease the latest tensions, according to the Syrian state news agency.

— Tal Shalev, CNN Money, 25 Aug. 2026
The Fils-Tiafoe match was the first time two Black players have met in an ATP Masters 1000 final.

— Jeff Wallner, Chicago Tribune, 24 Aug. 2026

Definition of met

Verb

The company, founded in 1995, has grown through a combination of scale and acquisitions, building an operation that spans much of the food supply chain.

— Brandon Gomez, CNBC, 28 Aug. 2026
The trio, who founded the startup, were sued for securities fraud, common law fraud, and breach of contract.

— Charisma Madarang, Rolling Stone, 27 Aug. 2026

Definition of found

Verb

El-Sayed has taken heat from some in his party over his associations with Piker, the left-wing streamer whose comments about American Jews have faced intense criticism in recent days.

— Nicholas Wu, semafor.com, 27 Aug. 2026
An inquest opened Wednesday into the sudden death earlier this month of Jason Arday, a Cambridge University professor who faced a storm of plagiarism accusations.

— ABC News, ABC News, 26 Aug. 2026

Definition of faced

Verb

Surveillance video from the Cedar Glenn complex showed Brunson, Newman, and another unnamed co-defendant jumping a fence, approaching a Chevrolet Suburban, and fleeing after being confronted by a witness.

— Ana Maria Soler, CBS News, 26 Aug. 2026
Pursued by monstrous entities and confronted by manifestations of human suffering, Dante and Virgil will eventually come face to face with the Devil himself.

— Ed Meza, Variety, 25 Aug. 2026

Definition of confronted

Verb

The 6-2 Marshall, a former second-round pick of the Carolina Panthers, hasn’t made big plays in the passing game, but has caught Slowik’s eye in another area.

— Barry Jackson, Miami Herald, 27 Aug. 2026
Noah Tarrant caught both scoring passes, 12 and 63 yards, and finished with five catches for 106 yards.

— Darren Lauber, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 27 Aug. 2026

Definition of caught

Verb

Instead, Parton greeted fans virtually via video, wearing a pair of sparkling wings.

— Charisma Madarang, Rolling Stone, 22 Aug. 2026
Bleday doubled in a run off Arizona starter Michael Soroka in the first inning, tripled to score another in the third and greeted reliever Zach Littell with a single in the fourth.

— ABC News, ABC News, 22 Aug. 2026

Definition of greeted

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encounter

encountered

encountering

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“Encountered.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/encountered. Accessed 28 Aug. 2026.

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Synonyms of encountered

verb

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