hit (upon)

as in to find
to come upon unexpectedly or by chance the popular belief that Sir Isaac Newton hit upon his understanding of gravity at the sight of an apple falling from a tree

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for hit (upon)
Verb
  • JoJo Romero regaining his form Speaking of pitchers who have turned it around, Romero has found his groove again.
    Katie Woo, New York Times, 26 May 2025
  • More information can be found online at pnw.edu/leadership-institute or by reaching out to the Leadership Institute at leadershipinstitute@pnw.edu.
    Post-Tribune, Chicago Tribune, 26 May 2025
Verb
  • Domestic cats descend from desert-dwelling ancestors who rarely encountered large bodies of water.
    Lucy Notarantonio, MSNBC Newsweek, 4 June 2025
  • Yankees supporters are accustomed to Dodger Stadium being hostile ground, but being hit by a chunk of concrete falling from the stadium ceiling is beyond what fans steel themselves to encounter.
    Clara Harter, Los Angeles Times, 3 June 2025
Verb
  • Particularly nowadays, as science becomes more open and accessible to everyone, such arcane vocabulary can come across as old-fashioned and elitist.
    Nicholas Green, The Conversation, 3 June 2025
  • John Densmore, the legendary drummer for the Doors, recalls coming across a classic rock station one night that bragged about a contest on who currently has the most money in rock and roll.
    David Chiu, Forbes.com, 2 June 2025
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.

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Cite this Entry

“Hit (upon).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hit%20%28upon%29. Accessed 8 Jun. 2025.

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