appear
Americanverb (used without object)
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appears,
present (3rd person singular)
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appeared,
past participle, past
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appearing
present participle
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to come into sight; become visible.
A man suddenly appeared in the doorway.
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to have the appearance of being; seem; look.
to appear wise.
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to be obvious or easily perceived; be clear or made clear by evidence.
It appears to me that you are right.
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to come or be placed before the public; be published.
Her biography appeared last year.
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to perform publicly, as in a play, dance, etc..
He appeared as the king in the play.
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to attend or be present, especially to arrive late or stay but a short time.
He appeared at the party but left quickly.
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to come into being; be created, invented, or developed.
Speech appears in the child's first or second year.
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Law. to come formally, especially as a party or counsel, to a proceeding before a tribunal, authority, etc.
verb
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to come into sight or view
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(copula; may take an infinitive) to seem or look
the evidence appears to support you
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to be plain or clear, as after further evidence, etc
it appears you were correct after all
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to develop or come into being; occur
faults appeared during testing
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to become publicly available; be published
his biography appeared last month
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to perform or act
he has appeared in many London productions
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to be present in court before a magistrate or judge
he appeared on two charges of theft
Synonym Usage
See seem.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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appearsimple
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appearssimple
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have appearedperfect
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has appearedperfect
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am appearingprogressive
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are appearingprogressive
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is appearingprogressive
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have been appearingperfect progressive
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has been appearingperfect progressive
Past
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appearedsimple
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had appearedperfect
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was appearingprogressive
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were appearingprogressive
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had been appearingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of appear
First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English ap(p)eren, from Anglo-French, Old French aper-, tonic stem of apare(i)r, apparoir, from Latin appārēre “to be seen, appear,” equivalent to ap- ap- 1 ( def. ) + pārēre “to be visible”
Explanation
If something appears, it comes into view. Rub a magic lamp and a genie will appear. If that's the case, she will grant you three wishes. Appear comes from the Latin apparere meaning "to appear, come in sight, make an appearance." Whether literally materializing or seeming to be true, the word appear is used to describe something coming into sight or presenting itself. The word can also be used to describe an actor appearing in a play. Julie Andrews appeared in the musical "Victor Victoria." When someone looks happy, he appears to be happy. When a detail seems true, it appears to be true.
Vocabulary lists containing appear
Workshop 1, Part 1
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Ceremony
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
The students, at least, appear to have learned one useful lesson from them: Always check the source — even when the adults hand it to you.
From Salon ● Aug. 15, 2026
It does not appear to represent a universal biological rule.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 15, 2026
Stewart will also appear as Professor X in the much-anticipated Avengers: Doomsday which is out later this year, before Abbott plays the role in X-Men.
From BBC ● Aug. 15, 2026
"Foundations are sometimes built on peat bogs: if these dry out, they shrink, and cracks can appear in buildings," she said.
From Barron's ● Aug. 15, 2026
And if this was what it took to rebuild, and to make Molly happy, and she swore at length never to appear on camera, there were worse things.
From "Night Owls" by A.R. Vishny
Investors must learn to live with uncertainty about any supplies from the Gulf even if an agreement on the strait eventually appears, Christopher Smart writes.
From Barron's ● Aug. 15, 2026
One appears in the current issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, while the other was published in Nature Metabolism in June.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 15, 2026
It followed attempts by some supporters to move on from a saga that appears to have ended with Chelsea now expecting to keep one of their best players.
From BBC ● Aug. 15, 2026
Over the past 15 years, the Hindenburg Omen’s effectiveness appears to have diminished, data showed.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 15, 2026
“When she appears, Glory, you’ll have to distract her.”
From "The Way to Rio Luna" by Zoraida Cordova
Adam Driver, who appeared at the event in a recorded video bit, will be playing Nathaniel Milbury, better known to fans as Mr. Sinister.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 15, 2026
The bizarre geography lesson appeared in student agendas distributed at Farnsley Middle School, part of Jefferson County Public Schools in Louisville.
From Salon ● Aug. 15, 2026
The suspension of counting appeared "disproportionate" as only a small number of the more than 13,000 polling stations had reportedly been compromised, the Austrian politician told reporters.
From Barron's ● Aug. 15, 2026
The idea became highly influential in evolutionary biology and eventually appeared widely in biology textbooks.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 15, 2026
Renn was huddled in her sleeping-sack, thinking about getting up, when Torak appeared at the entrance to the shelter, making her jump.
From "Wolf Brother" by Michelle Paver
He threw 34 pitches before the Dodgers’ game against the Milwaukee Brewers, appearing to mix in different pitch types.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 15, 2026
Though it hadn’t received much attention at the time, it began to gain some traction on social media right after Olin settled down in Europe, frequently appearing in short-form videos across Instagram.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 14, 2026
It stirred online clashes and even led to small groups of protesters and counterprotesters appearing at Fever games.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 13, 2026
Remember, one of the acronyms for fear is “future experiences appearing real.”
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 13, 2026
“Pip,” said Joe, appearing a little hurried and troubled, “there has been larks. And, dear sir, what have been betwixt us—have been.”
From "Great Expectations" by Charles Dickens
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
