oc ‧ cur S1 W1 AC /əˈkɜː $ əˈkɜːr/ BrE AmE verb ( past tense and past participle occurred , present participle occurring ) [intransitive] formal
[ Word Family: verb : ↑ occur ; noun : ↑ occurrence ]
[ Date: 1500-1600 ; Language: Latin ; Origin: occurrere , from currere 'to run' ]
1 . to happen:
A third of accidental deaths occur in the home.
The explosion occurred at 5.30 a.m.
REGISTER
In everyday English, people usually say happen rather than occur :
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The accident happened while she was at school.
2 . [always + adverb/preposition] to happen or exist in a particular place or situation
occur in/among etc
Whooping cough occurs mainly in young children.
The highest rates of unemployment occur in the inner urban areas.
occur to somebody phrasal verb
if an idea or a thought occurs to you, it suddenly comes into your mind
it occurs to somebody to do something
I suppose it didn’t occur to you to phone the police?
It never seems to occur to my children to contact me.
it occurs to somebody (that)
It had never occurred to him that he might be falling in love with her.
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THESAURUS
▪ happen used especially when talking about events that have not been planned:
When did the accident happen?
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Something terrible has happened!
▪ take place to happen – used especially when talking about events that have been planned or that have already happened:
The conference will take place on the 16th of June.
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The competition took place on Saturday 30th June.
▪ occur formal to happen – used especially when talking about events that have not been planned:
The incident occurred outside the police station at around 9 pm.
▪ there is/there are used when saying that a particular event happens:
There was an earthquake about a week ago.
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There are strikes almost every year.
▪ come up to happen – used about problems, questions, or opportunities:
There aren’t any jobs at the moment, but we’ll let you know if something comes up.
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This question often comes up when I’m talking to students.
▪ arise formal to happen unexpectedly – used about problems, arguments, or difficult situations:
A dispute arose about who should receive the money.
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It is best to deal with the problem as soon as it arises.
▪ crop up to happen – used about problems or difficult situations, especially ones that are less serious, and can quickly be dealt with:
The banks will contact their customers if a problem crops up.
▪ strike to happen suddenly and unexpectedly – used about very bad events:
The hurricane struck at around 1 am.
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Disaster struck, and he lost all movement in his legs.
▪ turn out to happen in a particular way:
Luckily, everything turned out well.
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How did it all turn out?