happen
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- 1 happen、occur、arise
Describes an event, problem, change, or other phenomenon happening or coming into existence.
happen、occur、arise
Expresses that an event or phenomenon occurs, or that a new situation comes about.
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เกิดอะไรขึ้น? kə̀ət aray khʉ̂n What happened? เกิดอะไรขึ้น? details
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อุบัติเหตุเกิดขึ้นเมื่อคืนนี้ ùbàttìhèet kə̀ət khʉ̂n mʉ̂a khʉʉn níi The accident happened last night. อุบัติเหตุเกิดขึ้นเมื่อคืนนี้ details
Learning notes
Explanation
The expression combines เกิด, “to be born or arise,” with ขึ้น, which adds the sense of something emerging or coming about. It can describe not only incidents and accidents but also problems, changes, misunderstandings, feelings, relationships, and ideas. It is generally intransitive, so the thing that happens serves as the subject. Common expressions include เกิดอะไรขึ้น? (“What happened?”) and สิ่งที่เกิดขึ้น (“what happened” or “the events that occurred”).
Usage
Commonly used to ask what happened and to describe accidents, incidents, or unexpected situations. It is also frequent in news and workplace reports when discussing the occurrence of problems, changes, or errors.
Caution
It is normally intransitive and does not take a direct object. To say that something causes or produces a result, use ทำให้เกิด or ก่อให้เกิด. For the birth of a person or animal, use เกิด rather than เกิดขึ้น.
Differences from similar words
1 happen synonyms
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ปรากฏ emphasizes something appearing, becoming visible, or being revealed. เกิดขึ้น emphasizes that an event or situation actually occurs.
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อุบัติขึ้น also means “occur,” but it is more formal and is mainly encountered in writing or news reports. เกิดขึ้น is neutral and common in both conversation and writing.
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เกิด can mean “be born” as well as “happen.” เกิดขึ้น more clearly focuses on an event, situation, or phenomenon occurring or coming about.