Occasion
Pronunciation
- IPA: /əˈkeɪʒən/
- Rhymes: -eɪʒən
- Hyphenation: oc + ca + sion
Origin
From Old French ocasion, from Latin occasionem (accusative of occasio), noun of action from perfect passive participle occasus, from verb occido, from prefix ob- ("down", "away") + verb cado ("fall").
Full definition of occasion
Noun
occasion
(plural occasions)- A favorable opportunity; a convenient or timely chance. from 14th c.
- Bible, Rom. vii. 11Sin, taking occasion by the commandment, deceived me.
- WallerI'll take the occasion which he gives to bring
Him to his death. - The time when something happens.
- 1918, W. B. Maxwell, The Mirror and the Lamp Chapter 13, And Vickers launched forth into a tirade very different from his platform utterances. He spoke with extreme contempt of the dense stupidity exhibited on all occasions by the working classes. He said that if you wanted to do anything for them, you must rule them, not pamper them.
- At this point, she seized the occasion to make her own observation.
- An occurrence or state of affairs which causes some event or reaction; a motive or reason. from 14th c.I had no occasion to feel offended, however.
- Something which causes something else; a cause. from 14th c.
- 1624, John Smith, Generall Historie, in Kupperman 1988, p. 130:it were too vile to say, and scarce to be beleeved, what we endured: but the occasion was our owne, for want of providence, industrie and government ....
- (obsolete) An occurrence or incident. 14th-18th c.
- A particular happening; an instance or time when something occurred. from 15th c.
- 2013, April 9, Andrei Lankov, Stay Cool. Call North Korea’s Bluff., In the last two decades, North Korea has on various occasions conducted highly provocative missile and nuclear tests and promised to turn Seoul into a sea of fire.
- I could think of two separate occasions when she had deliberately lied to me.
- Need; requirement, necessity. from 16th c.
- 1898, Winston Churchill, The Celebrity Chapter 2, I had occasion … to make a somewhat long business trip to Chicago, and on my return … I found Farrar awaiting me in the railway station. He smiled his wonted fraction by way of greeting, …, and finally leading me to his buggy, turned and drove out of town. I was completely mystified at such an unusual proceeding.
- I have no occasion for firearms.
- Jeremy Taylorafter we have served ourselves and our own occasions
- Burkewhen my occasions took me into France
- A special event or function. from 19th c.Having people round for dinner was always quite an occasion at our house.
- A reason or excuse; a motive; a persuasion.
- SpenserWhose manner was, all passengers to stay,
And entertain with her occasions sly.