Definition of "encounter" in English

verb

1. (transitive) To meet (someone) or find (something), especially unexpectedly.

2. (transitive) To confront (someone or something) face to face.

3. (intransitive, rare) To meet one another.

4. (intransitive) To engage in conflict, as with an enemy.

   • Three armies encountered at Waterloo.

5. (transitive, euphemistic, India) To kill or execute someone extrajudicially.

noun

1. A meeting, especially one that is unplanned or unexpected.

   • Their encounter was a matter of chance.

2. A hostile, often violent meeting; a confrontation, skirmish, or clash, as between combatants.

3. (sports) A match between two opposing sides.

4. (sexuality) 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 only once is commonly known as a one-night stand.

5. (sciences) The period of a space mission during which it carries out its data-gathering objectives.

6. (India) An extrajudicial killing or execution.