occurred; occurring ə-ˈkər-iŋ 
-ˈkə-riŋ
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The Meaning of Occur and the Spelling of Its Forms
Occur has three meanings. It means "to be found or met with; appear," as in "a phenomenon that occurs around the world"; it means "to come into existence; happen," as in "an event that occurred on Friday"; and it means "to come to mind," as in "it occurs to me that the word is quite useful."
It's an unusual-looking word, being so small but with two c's up against each other, and then just a simple r at the end. The r is doubled, though, for the past tense: occurred. And the double r continues in the present participle: occurring.
Examples of occur in a Sentence
The event is scheduled to occur at noon tomorrow. No one was ready for what was about to occur. There's a chance that a similar event will occur in the future. The disease tends to occur in children under the age of five. The plant occurs naturally throughout South America.
Recent Examples on the Web
Once Cole and Rodón are ready, another starter will be forced out if no other injuries occur. —
Gary Phillips, New York Daily News, 22 Apr. 2026 The peak of a shower occurs when Earth passes closest to the comet that produces the meteors. —Avni Trivedi, CNN Money, 21 Apr. 2026 The earthquake's epicenter was roughly 11 miles south-southeast of Silver Springs and occurred at a depth of 7 miles. —Ca Earthquake Bot, Sacbee.com, 21 Apr. 2026 If no one candidate garners more that 50% of the vote, as occurred in Bass’s battle with developer Rick Caruso in 2022, then the election goes to a runoff on November 3 – the same day as the nationwide midterms. —Dominic Patten, Deadline, 21 Apr. 2026 See All Example Sentences for occur
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Gary Phillips, New York Daily News, 22 Apr. 2026 The peak of a shower occurs when Earth passes closest to the comet that produces the meteors. —Avni Trivedi, CNN Money, 21 Apr. 2026 The earthquake's epicenter was roughly 11 miles south-southeast of Silver Springs and occurred at a depth of 7 miles. —Ca Earthquake Bot, Sacbee.com, 21 Apr. 2026 If no one candidate garners more that 50% of the vote, as occurred in Bass’s battle with developer Rick Caruso in 2022, then the election goes to a runoff on November 3 – the same day as the nationwide midterms. —Dominic Patten, Deadline, 21 Apr. 2026 See All Example Sentences for occur
Cite this Entry
“Occur.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.grautoblog.com/dictionary/occur. Accessed 24 Apr. 2026.
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