Yours truly set new encounters (5)
I believe the answer is:
meets
'encounters' is the definition.
('meet' can be a synonym of 'encounter')
'yours truly set new' is the wordplay.
'yours truly' becomes 'me' (the person who set this crossword).
'new' indicates anagramming the letters.
'set' is an anagram of 'ets'.
'me'+'ets'='MEETS'
(Other definitions for meets that I've seen before include "Comes together with others" , "Joins with" , "Comes into contact with" , "Encounters, perhaps by appointment" , "Makes contact with" .)