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happen

HA-puhn/ˈhæpən/

Formshappens, happening, happened

6 meanings of happen

Practice

  1. 1
    take placeverbintransitive
    To take place or come about as an event.

    Major historical shifts rarely happen overnight.

    The festival happens in the town square every summer.

    UsageSomething happens to someone; there is no passive, so it happened (not incorrect: it was happened).

    Similaroccur, arise, transpire

  2. 2
    by chanceverbintransitivewith infinitive
    Of an event, to come about by accident or unexpectedly; of a person, to do something by chance.

    Do you happen to know whether the pharmacy on Fifth Street is open late?

    She happened to glance up just as the comet appeared.

    UsageOften softens a question or request: do you happen to know the time?

    Similaroccur, chance

  3. 3
    come acrossverbintransitive
    To come upon or encounter someone or something by chance.

    Hikers occasionally happen upon ruins deep in the forest.

    He happened upon a rare coin at the flea market.

    UsageFollowed by upon or on: happen upon a hidden waterfall.

    Similarstumble, chance, come

    Note

    Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Marble Faun (1860) has a character who "happened upon a spot where the vintage had actually commenced." Unlike the "by chance" infinitive use, the object here is the thing found.

    Checked 2 Nov 2026 · 2 facts

    • Nathaniel Hawthorne wrote The Marble Faun, first published in 1860. en.wikipedia.org
    • The quoted wording occurs in the novel's narration, describing a character's discovery. gutenberg.org

Less common meanings

  1. 4
    become popularverbcolloquialintransitive
    To become popular or fashionable, gaining buzz and attention.

    The waterfront district is finally starting to happen, with new bars opening every week.

    For years nobody went downtown at night, but now the music scene is starting to happen.

    UsageOften in starting to happen, said of a place, scene or career.

    Similarboom, thrive, flourish

  2. 5
    affect (someone)verbarchaictransitive
    To befall someone; to come upon a person as something they undergo.

    Should any harm happen the child, the guardian must answer for it.

    They prayed that no evil would happen the travelers on their long journey.

    Note

    Here the person affected stands as a direct object, with no preposition. In Sheridan Le Fanu's The House by the Churchyard (1863), a character mutters that "something bad has happened me."

    Checked 2 Nov 2026 · 3 facts

    • Sheridan Le Fanu wrote The House by the Churchyard. en.wikipedia.org
    • The novel's first book publication was in 1863. celt.ucc.ie
    • A character mutters the quoted words; the dialogue is Doctor Sturk's. gutenberg.org
  3. 6
    adverbobsolete
    Perhaps; used to express that something is possible but not certain.
    Yeah, well happen if he'd gone quietly, she wouldn't have needed to show him who's in charge.
    2016, Sally Wainwright, Happy Valley
    Note

    The chance in the "by chance" sense became a sentence adverb: "it may happen that," and so "perhaps." It is obsolete in the standard language but survives in dialect. Sally Wainwright's Happy Valley (2016) gives it to Catherine Cawood: "happen if he'd gone quietly…"

    Checked 2 Nov 2026 · 4 facts

Practice

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Origin

Middle English happen ("to come to pass") was extended to happenen. Its source is perhaps hæppan, an Old English verb meaning "to move accidentally, slip," or Old Norse, or both, going back to Proto-Germanic. In effect it is hap ("a chance, occurrence") plus the verbal suffix -en.