發生的那件事
把「正在發生」這件事本身拿來當名詞用，所以它可以被數、被列成清單、被寫進報紙。
noun · B2
Something that happens — an event people notice and talk about, especially an odd one that nobody can quite explain.
事件
核心畫面
One way to hold this word: point at a spot and say, something is going on right there. Sometimes you are naming the thing itself — that odd event, still . Sometimes you are naming the spot, because that is where the going-on is. The word never explains anything; it only says that something is taking place.
happening 可以想成手指往某個地方一指，說一句：那裡正在發生事情。有時候你指的是那件事本身——那件怪事，還沒…更多收起
happening 可以想成手指往某個地方一指，說一句：那裡正在發生事情。有時候你指的是那件事本身——那件怪事，還沒人說得清楚。有時候你指的是那個地方，因為動靜就在那裡。這個字從來不負責解釋原因，它只說：有事情正在發生。From the word’s history
Wiktionary's etymology traces happen back through Middle English to a root meaning luck or chance (Old Norse happ), which fits the way happening so often names an event nobody planned or can explain.
維基詞典的字源把 happen 經由中古英語一路追到表示「運氣、偶然」的字根（古北歐語 happ）。這條線正好對上 happening 的用法：它常常用在沒人安排、也沒人說得清楚的事情上。
Wiktionary entry happening, etymology tree (Middle English happen; Old Norse *happ), kaikki:3f6f69a190036ae4:790431336
Two branches
正在發生事情的那個地方
同樣一句「這裡正在發生事情」，這次拿來形容地方或東西：有動靜的就是 happening 的。
adjective · B2
Busy and full of life, with things going on that people want to be part of right now; also used of clothes, music, or anything else that is right up to the minute.
熱鬧、正夯的
原始詞典資料5 筆記錄
以下是外部詞典記錄的用法，原文照列，我們還沒有寫成教學內容。上面的說明才是我們自己寫的；有些用法可能上面已經講過了。
happeningadj詞源 1/ˈhæpɪnɪŋ/
- 1
slangBusy, lively; vibrant, dynamic; fashionable.
- “[…]San Francisco is not exactly the most happening place, you know.”
- When the show ends, the circular, sunken floor is one of the more happening dance clubs in town.
- 2
slangTrendy, up-to-the-minute.
- Every show has its hottest, most happening trends. If I were to isolate just one for hardware and one for software, this year's hot hardware would be the 386 machines, and the happening software would be desktop publishing.
- Going strong since 2006, this ephemeral nightclub (it's open only for 50 nights each year, in July and August) has become the hottest ticket in DJ land, a combination of the most happening names in music and its spectacular setting at the heart of the Palais des Festivals.
happeningnoun詞源 2/ˈhæpɪnɪŋ/
- 1
Something that happens.
- Three follow-up singles, all ecological or religious in theme, did chart in the lower reaches of the Hot 100. Thereafter, Ocean remained a Canadian happening.
- 2
A spontaneous or improvised event, especially one that involves audience participation.
- And it was some kind of happening / Some kind of happening / Salvador Dali's garden party
這個拼法也被記錄為下列字的變化形：
資料來源：英文維基詞典 English Wiktionary（CC BY-SA 4.0）。 原文照列，未經改寫。