This noun denotes a meeting or encounter between people, whether arranged or by chance. In New Testament usage it could mean coming out to meet someone arriving, as when people went out from a city to greet an approaching dignitary. Classical authors used it for chance meetings in the marketplace or for formal encounters. The word could also mean controversy or confrontational debate—meetings where opposing views clashed. In astronomical contexts, it referred to the conjunction of heavenly bodies. The root sense of 'meeting' adapted to various contexts where paths crossed, whether peaceful, contentious, or celestial.