
occasion | occasion: n. 1 time, moment, circumstance, incident, occurrence, opportunity, chance, opening, advantage: I took the occasion of the inquiry to leave town. 2 reason, cause, call, justification, ground(s), warrant, provocation, prompting, impulse, stimulus, incitement, inducement: Tom gave David no occasion to doubt his honesty. 3 event, function, happening, affair, observance, commemoration, ceremony, celebration, gala, party,: Grandpapa''s ninetieth birthday was a great occasion. This hall is saved for important occasions. 4 on occasion. See occasionally, below. --v. 5 give rise to, bring about, cause, bring on, effect, prompt, provoke, evoke, call forth, elicit, call up, induce, impel, create, generate, engender, produce, make (for): An increase in the inflation rate occasions a decrease in the value of money.
occasional | occasional: adj. 1 intermittent, irregular, periodic, random, sporadic, infrequent, casual, incidental: They staged occasional raids on the arsenal. He works as an occasional farm hand. 2 additional, extra, spare, supplementary, incidental, auxiliary, accessory: We bought a few occasional chairs in case we have company. 3 special, particular, ceremonial, ritual: She writes occasional verses for memorial services.
occasionally | occasionally: adv. sometimes, on occasion, (every) now and then, from time to time, at times, (every) now and again, once in a while, every so often, periodically, intermittently, sporadically, irregularly, off and on: We go up the Lake District for a weekend occasionally. Trevor occasionally drops in at the local pub for a beer.
occult | occult: adj. 1 secret, dark, concealed, private, privy, hidden, obscure, veiled, obscured, shrouded, vague, abstruse, shadowy, mystical, mysterious, cabbalistic, esoteric, recondite, arcane: Printing was kept an occult art for generations. 2 magical, mystical, alchemic(al), unexplained, unexplainable, inexplicable, puzzling, baffling, perplexing, mystifying, mysterious, incomprehensible, inscrutable, indecipherable, impenetrable, unfathomable, transcendental, supernatural, preternatural, mystic: They dress in odd clothes and participate in occult rituals at peculiar times of the day and night. --n. 3 Usually, the occult. the supernatural, the unknown, the black arts; arcana, cabbala or cabala or kabbala; cabbalism or cabalism or kabbalism, occultism, sorcery, witchcraft, black magic: Keith has studied the occult for many years.
occupant | occupant: n. resident, inhabitant, occupier, tenant, lessee, leaseholder, renter, owner, householder, indweller, dweller, denizen, lodger, roomer, boarder; addressee; incumbent: The occupant of the flat upstairs is rarely home.
occupation | occupation: n. 1 job, position, post, situation, appointment, employment, vocation, line (of work), career, field, calling, trade, m�tier, craft, skill, profession, business, work: Claverton pursued his occupation as a miniaturist for some fifty years. 2 possession, tenure, occupancy, rule, control, suzerainty, subjugation, subjection, oppression, bondage: Terrible atrocities were committed while the land was under the occupation of the Mongols. 3 conquest, seizure, appropriation, take-over: Francisco Pizarro was responsible for the occupation of Peru.
occupy | occupy: v. 1 capture, seize, take possession of, conquer, invade, take over, overrun, garrison, dominate, hold: Rebel forces had occupied the capital and toppled the governor. 2 live or reside or dwell in, tenant, be established or ensconced or situated in, establish or ensconce or situate oneself in, inhabit, be settled in or into, settle in or into, take up residence in, make one''s home in, move in or into; be located in: She occupies a luxurious flat in Belgravia. 3 engage, busy, absorb, monopolize, hold, take up or over, catch, grab, seize, grip; divert, amuse, entertain, distract, beguile, preoccupy, hold (someone''s) attention, interest, engross, involve: Other matters occupied my attention last Sunday. While one man was keeping the shopkeeper occupied, the other man was robbing the till. 4 fill (in or up), take up, cover, extend over, consume, use (up), Colloq eat up: The car occupies more garage space than I thought it would. Housework occupies very little of my time.
occur | occur: v. 1 happen, take place, arise, come about, befall, come to pass, chance, appear, surface, materialize, develop, become manifest, manifest itself, Colloq transpire, crop up, come off, turn up: We reported to the police all that had occurred. What occurred to make you late this time? 2 occur to. dawn on, strike, hit, come to, suggest itself to, cross (someone''s) mind, enter (someone''s) head, be brought to (someone''s) attention: Has it occurred to you that she might not like opera?
occurrence | occurrence: n. 1 happening, event, incident, phenomenon, affair, matter, experience: Earthquakes are frequent occurrences in California. 2 existence, instance, manifestation, materialization, appearance, development: The occurrence of mutations diversifies the species. 3 frequency, incidence, rate; likelihood, chance: What is the recorded occurrence of typhoons in the South China Sea?
ocean | ocean: n. 1 (deep blue) sea, (bounding) main, high seas, the deep, Davy Jones''s locker, the depths, Colloq the briny, the drink: The sails filled, and our tiny craft was swept out into the open ocean. 2 Often, oceans. flood, abundance, multitude, profusion, plethora, Colloq scads, loads, tons, lots, oodles, gobs, zillions: The direct mail campaign yielded oceans of responses.
oceanic | oceanic: adj. marine, pelagic, thalassic; salt-water, deep-water, aquatic, maritime, sea, ocean: These creatures are chiefly oceanic, coming ashore only to breed.
