English [ edit ] Etymology [ edit ] From Middle English happenen
Pronunciation [ edit ] happen (third-person singular simple present happens present participle happening simple past and past participle happened
To occur or take place .
2013 June 28, Joris Luyendijk , “Our banks are out of control ”, The Guardian Weekly
Seeing the British establishment struggle with the financial sector is like watching an alcoholic who still resists the idea that something drastic needs to happen for him to turn his life around.
Let me tell you how it happened .
To occur unexpectedly, by chance or with a low probability.
Take an umbrella in case it happens to rain. Do you happen to have an umbrella?
( followed by on upon ) To encounter by chance .
1860 , Nathaniel Hawthorne , The Marble Faun , ch. 30:
Unexpectedly, in a nook close by the farmhouse, he happened upon a spot where the vintage had actually commenced.
Usage notes [ edit ] Derived terms [ edit ]
Terms derived from happen
Related terms [ edit ] Translations [ edit ]
to occur
Albanian: ndodhë
Arabic: حدث Hádatha )
Armenian: պատահել patahel )
Belarusian: здарыцца zdárycca )
Bulgarian: се случи se sluči )
Catalan: passar (ca) , ocórrer (ca) , succeir (ca)
Chinese:
Mandarin: 發生 (zh) , 发生 (zh) (fāshēng )
Czech: stát se
Danish: ske (da) , hænde indtræffe
Dutch: gebeuren (nl)
Esperanto: okazi
Estonian: juhtuma toimuma (et)
Finnish: tapahtua (fi) , sattua (fi) , käydä (fi)
French: advenir (fr) , arriver (fr) , se produire (fr) , se passer (fr)
Georgian: მოხდომა moxdoma )
German: geschehen (de) , passieren (de) , stattfinden (de)
Greek: συμβαίνω (el) (symvaíno ), τυχαίνω (el) (tychaíno ), λαχαίνω (el) (lachaíno ), τυγχάνω (el) (tyncháno ), διαδραματίζομαι diadramatízomai ), σημειώνομαι simeiónomai )
Hebrew: קָרָה kará ), הָלַךְ (he) (halákh )
Hindi: बीतना bītnā )
Hungarian: történik (hu)
Icelandic: bera við henda (is) , verða (is) , vilja til
Ido: eventar (io)
Irish: tarlaigh
Italian: accadere (it) , succedere (it)
Japanese: 起こる (ja) (おこる, okoru ), 起る おこる, okoru )
Korean: 일어낟 ireonada )
Ladino:
Roman: afitar eo (la)
Latin: fieri fio (la) , accido (la) , contingo evenio cado intercido
Latvian: notik
Lithuanian: atsitikti vykti (lt) , įvykti
Luhya: esihole
Norwegian: foregå inntreffe skje (no)
Novial: eventa
Old English: weorþan ġeweorþan
Persian: پیشامد کردن
Polish: zdarzyć się (pl) , wydarzyć się (pl) , dziać się (pl) , zaistnieć stać się (pl)
Portuguese: acontecer (pt) , suceder (pt)
Romanian: întâmpla (ro) , petrece (ro)
Russian: происходить (ru) (proisxodít’ ) impf. произойти (ru) (proizojtí ) pf. случаться (ru) (slučát’sja ) impf. случиться (ru) (slučít’sja ) pf. состояться (ru) (sostoját’sja ) pf.
Sardinian:
Campidanese Sardinian: accadésseri sutzediri
Gallurese Sardinian: avviné
Logudorese Sardinian: sutzèdere
Sassarese Sardinian: accadí
Scottish Gaelic: tachair turchair tàrlaidh
Serbo-Croatian: ( reflexive ) dogoditi
Seri: aaha
Slovak: stať sa
Slovene: zgodíti se
Spanish: suceder (es) , ocurrir (es) , pasar (es)
Swahili: tukiyo (sw)
Swedish: hända (sv) , ske (sv) , inträffa (sv) , äga rum (sv)
Thai: เกิด (th) (gèrt )
Turkish: olmak (tr) , yer bulmak (tr) , meydana gelmek (tr)
Ukrainian: статися státysja )
Urdu: بیتنا bītnā )
Vietnamese: xảy ra (vi) , xảy đến
Volapük: jenön (vo)
Yiddish: געשען geshen )
happen (not comparable )
( obsolete or dialect ) maybe , perhaps .
Pronunciation [ edit ] happen (past singular hapte past participle gehapt
to take a bite
Conjugation [ edit ] happen
Plural form of hap
