appear

appear — verb

1. to start being seen, often suddenly or after being hidden, so that someone notic

1.verbintransitiveB1
Definition

to start being seen, often suddenly or after being hidden, so that someone notices you or it.

Example

A small rabbit suddenly appeared from behind the wooden fence.

appear + from/behind [place]

Dark clouds appeared over the mountain just before the storm hit Taipei.

Common collocations
  • suddenly appear
  • appear out of nowhere
  • appear on the horizon
  • first appeared
Synonyms
  • emerge

    more formal; suggests coming out of something

  • show up

    informal; often about people arriving

  • materialize

    suggests appearing as if by magic

Antonyms

Grammar Patterns

appear + (preposition + place)

appear from/behind/out of [place]

Usage Note

Subject is usually a thing or living creature that comes into the watcher's view. Often paired with adverbs like suddenly, slowly, or first.

Common Mistakes

Suddenly a cat appeared it on the wall.
Suddenly a cat appeared on the wall.
appear is intransitive; do not add an object pronoun after it.

2. to be at a court or other official place because you are part of a legal case, e

2.verbintransitiveB2
Definition

to be at a court or other official place because you are part of a legal case, either as the accused, a witness, or a lawyer.

Example

Mr. Lin will appear in court next Tuesday on charges of fraud.

appear in court on [charge]

The teenager appeared before the judge with his parents and a lawyer.

appear before [judge]

Common collocations
  • appear in court
  • appear before the judge
  • appear on charges
  • appear as a witness
Synonyms
  • attend

    more general; not specific to court

  • testify

    specifically to give evidence under oath

Antonyms

Grammar Patterns

appear in court

appear before [judge / committee]

appear on [charge]

Usage Note

Almost always followed by 'in court', 'before [an authority]', or 'at [a hearing]'. Distinguish from sense 1 (BECOME VISIBLE): this sense is about formal attendance, not about being seen.

Common Mistakes

He went to appear the court yesterday.
He appeared in court yesterday.
use the fixed phrase 'appear in court', not 'appear the court'.

3. to give the outward impression of being a certain way, even though you are not s

3.verbintransitiveB1
Definition

to give the outward impression of being a certain way, even though you are not sure it is really true.

Example

Sara appeared calm during the interview, but her hands were shaking.

appear + adjective

The plan appears to be working, since sales have grown for three months.

appear to + base verb

Common collocations
  • appear calm
  • appear confident
  • appear to be
  • it appears that
Synonyms
  • seem

    very close in meaning; slightly more common in speech

  • look

    based mainly on visual impression

  • come across as

    how someone is perceived by others

Grammar Patterns

appear + adjective

appear to + base verb

it appears (that) + clause

Usage Note

Use 'appear to + base verb' (appear to be / appear to know), NOT 'appear that someone V'. The pattern 'It appears that + clause' is correct, but 'He appears that he is tired' is wrong — say 'He appears to be tired'.

Common Mistakes

She appears that she is happy.
She appears to be happy.
after a personal subject, use 'appear to + verb', not 'appear that S V'.
It appears to rain tomorrow.
It appears that it will rain tomorrow.
for predictions about weather/events, use 'It appears that + clause'.

4. to act, sing, or otherwise perform as one of the people you can see in a movie,

4.verbintransitiveB1
Definition

to act, sing, or otherwise perform as one of the people you can see in a movie, stage production, or broadcast.

Example

Emma Stone appeared in three films last year, including a romantic comedy.

appear in [film]

The young actor will appear as Hamlet at the National Theatre next month.

appear as [character]

Common collocations
  • appear on stage
  • appear in a film
  • appear as
  • guest appear
Synonyms
  • perform

    broader; covers any kind of performance

  • star

    to play the main role

  • feature

    often used in passive: 'be featured in'

Grammar Patterns

appear in [film / play / show]

appear as [character]

appear on [TV programme]

Usage Note

Subject is usually a performer (actor, singer, band). Use 'in' for films/plays, 'on' for TV programmes. Different from sense 5 (BE PUBLISHED): a person appears in a show, but a book or article appears in a magazine.

Common Mistakes

He appeared at the new Marvel movie.
He appeared in the new Marvel movie.
use 'in' for films and plays, not 'at'.

5. (of writing, photos, or news) to be printed in a newspaper, magazine, or book, o

5.verbintransitiveB2
Definition

(of writing, photos, or news) to be printed in a newspaper, magazine, or book, or shown on a website or screen.

Example

Her photo appeared on the front page of the local newspaper this morning.

appear on [page]

An article about the new vaccine appeared in The Lancet last week.

appear in [journal]

Common collocations
  • appear in print
  • first appeared
  • appear on the front page
  • appear in [newspaper]
Synonyms

Grammar Patterns

appear in [newspaper / magazine / journal]

appear on [website / page]

Usage Note

Subject is the text, image, or piece of content — not the author. Often used with 'first appeared' to mark the original publication.

Common Mistakes

The author appeared the article in The Times.
The article appeared in The Times.' / 'The author published the article in The Times.
appear has no object; the writing itself is the subject.

6. to come into existence for the first time, so that people start to know about it

6.verbintransitiveB2
Definition

to come into existence for the first time, so that people start to know about it or use it.

Example

Smartphones first appeared in the late 1990s and changed daily life forever.

first appeared in [time]

A new strain of the flu virus has appeared in northern Europe this winter.

Common collocations
  • first appeared
  • newly appeared
  • appear on the market
  • appear on the scene
Synonyms
  • emerge

    more formal; common with trends and ideas

  • arise

    formal; often for problems or questions

  • come into being

    formal; about existence itself

Antonyms

Grammar Patterns

[thing] + appear + (time/place)

first appeared in [year/place]

Usage Note

Subject is a product, technology, trend, or idea that did not exist before. Distinguish from sense 1 (BECOME VISIBLE): sense 1 is about something physically coming into sight; this sense is about something newly existing in the world.

Common Mistakes

The internet appeared by Tim Berners-Lee.
The internet was created by Tim Berners-Lee.
appear focuses on the moment something becomes known, not on who made it; do not use 'by + agent'.

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: verb/3

All three verbs describe how something gives an outward impression, but they differ in evidence and tone. 'Look' relies mainly on what you can see — 'She looks tired' suggests visible cues like dark circles. 'Seem' is the most general and can be based on any kind of evidence (sight, sound, behaviour, gut feeling) — 'She seems tired' might just be a vague impression. 'Appear' sits closer to 'seem' but feels slightly more formal and is common in writing and reports — 'The witness appears reliable' fits a news article. Use 'look' when the impression is purely visual, 'seem' in everyday speech, and 'appear' for written or formal contexts. Compare: 'You look angry' (face shows it), 'You seem angry' (something tells me so), 'She appears angry in the photo' (formal observation).

appear ↗seem ↗look ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

Adverbs

Phrases

  • appear out of nowhere
  • appear on the scene
  • first appeared
  • appear in person
  • fail to appear

Prepositions

Etymology

LatinOld FrenchMiddle EnglishEnglish

The verb 'appear' came into English in the 13th century from Old French 'aparoir', which itself grew out of Latin 'apparere' — built from 'ad-' (toward) and 'parere' (to come into view, become visible). The earliest English uses kept the literal 'come into sight' meaning, and over the centuries the word stretched to cover seeming, performing, being published, and starting to exist — all variations on something becoming noticeable.