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encounter

Pronunciation: /ɪnˈkaʊntə/

The English word “encounter” has 11 meanings listed here.

verb

  1. To meet (someone) or find (something), especially unexpectedly.
  2. To confront (someone or something) face to face.
  3. To meet one another.
  4. To engage in conflict, as with an enemy.
  5. To kill or execute someone extrajudicially.

noun

  1. A meeting, especially one that is unplanned or unexpected.
  2. A hostile, often violent meeting; a confrontation, skirmish, or clash, as between combatants.
  3. A match between two opposing sides.
  4. A sexual encounter; sexual activity, especially unplanned or unexpected, between two people who have not already established a sexual relationship with each other. In many cases, it does not lead to a relationship, and thus is utterly transient. A sexual encounter can be consensual or non-consensual; in the latter case, it is known as sexual assault. A consensual sexual encounter that happens…
  5. The period of a space mission during which it carries out its data-gathering objectives.
  6. An extrajudicial killing or execution.

Etymology

From Middle English encountren, from Anglo-Norman encountrer, Old French encontrer (“to confront”), from encontre (“against, counter to”), from Late Latin incontrā (“in front of”) itself from Latin in (“in”) + contrā (“against”).

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Definitions are from Wiktionary, extracted by Kaikki.org, and are available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.