The Oxford Thesaurus An A-Z Dictionary of Synonyms INTRO ...

Mongols. 3 conquest, seizure, appropriation, take-over:
Francisco Pizarro was responsible for the occupation of Peru.
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 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
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 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,