The English Oracle

"happen to be" and "happen to have" - expressions of probability?

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Chapters
00:00 &Quot;Happen To Be&Quot; And &Quot;Happen To Have&Quot; - Expressions Of Probability?
00:36 Answer 1 Score 1
01:03 Accepted Answer Score 8
01:59 Thank you

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Tags
#meaning #meaningincontext

#avk47



ACCEPTED ANSWER

Score 8


"Happen" does come from the Middle English word "hap," meaning luck or chance, and it does retain that connotation in situations where it means occurs by chance:

I just happened to meet my cousin at the concert.

We didn't plan to go to the same concert. It was just a chance meeting.

But "happen" also simply means occurs:

The scandal is called "Watergate" because that's the name of the building where the break-in happened.

No chance involved: the break-in was deliberate.

Sometimes the word is employed for things that themselves didn't come about randomly but are relevant to the conversation only by chance:

A: My program isn't working. I wish someone could help.
B: Let me take a look. I happen to have a degree in computer science.

Here B is saying that he has a degree in computer science, and this is something that doesn't come about by chance but by planned study. What is a chance happening is that A needs help and has run into someone who can help.

In all these cases (and in your examples as well), these are statements of fact and not probability.




ANSWER 2

Score 1


No, not at all. In both cases, something "happened". It is a fact, not just a possibility.

To say "happened to be" or "happened to have" implies that it could have happened by chance (not likely for a degree in computer science—that would necessarily be intentional).

It does not include an iota of chance that the thing might NOT have happened.