encounter
[verb]
Synonyms:
- meet, bump into (informal), chance upon, come upon, confront, experience, face, run across
[noun]
Synonyms:
- meeting, brush, confrontation, rendezvous
- battle, clash, conflict, contest, head-to-head, run-in (informal)

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Contrasted words: miss, pass (by)
Related Idioms: cross the path of, fall in with, meet up with
Related Words: clash, collide, conflict, bump (into), come (across), run (across), run (into), contest, scrap, fight, fray, battle, argument, contention, quarrel

[TahlilGaran] English Synonym Dictionary ▲

I. en‧coun‧ter¹ W3 AC /ɪnˈkaʊntə $ -ər/ verb [transitive]
[Date: 1200-1300; Language: Old French; Origin: encontrer, from Late Latin incontra 'toward']

1. to experience something, especially problems or opposition
encounter problems/difficulties
They encountered serious problems when two members of the expedition were injured.
encounter opposition/resistance
The government has encountered strong opposition to its plans to raise income tax.
The doctor had encountered several similar cases in the past.

REGISTER
In everyday English, people usually say come across problems/difficulties rather than encounter problems/difficulties and come up against opposition/resistance rather than encounter opposition/resistance :
Did you come across any problems?
We came up against quite a lot of opposition from local people.

2. formal to meet someone without planning to:
I first encountered him when studying at Cambridge.

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲

II. encounter² AC noun [countable]

1. an occasion when you meet someone, or do something with someone you do not know:
She didn’t remember our encounter last summer.
encounter with
His first encounter with Wilson was back in 1989.
Bernstein began training the young musician after a chance encounter at a concert (=a meeting that happened by chance).
casual sexual encounters (=occasions when people have sex)
encounter between
hostile encounters between supporters of rival football teams

2. an occasion when you meet or experience something
encounter with
a child’s first encounter with books
a close encounter with a snake (=a frightening situation in which you get too close to something)

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲

encounter
noun
ADJ. brief I did not see him again, except for a brief encounter on a train.
casual, chance, unexpected It was a chance encounter that led to the setting up of the new political party.
close I decided not to risk a second close encounter with the snakes.
face-to-face | direct The press conference was her first direct encounter with the media.
unpleasant, violent | social the language we use in everyday social encounters
sexual
VERB + ENCOUNTER have I had my first encounter with the president two years ago.
ENCOUNTER + VERB take place
PREP. ~ between violent encounters between police and protesters
~ with my first encounter with my new boss

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲

encounter
verb
ADV. commonly, frequently, often, regularly Walruses were commonly encountered in the Shetland Islands until quite recently.
rarely | inevitably
VERB + ENCOUNTER be likely to What are the difficulties you are most likely to encounter?

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲