appeared; appearing; appears
1
a
: to be or come in sight
when the sun appears on the horizon
b
: to show up
He appears promptly at eight each day.
2
: to come formally before an authoritative body
must appear in court today
3
: to have an outward aspect : seem
She appears (to be) happy enough.
4
: to become evident or manifest
There appears to be evidence to the contrary.
5
: to come into public view
a performer who first appeared on a television variety show
The book appeared in print a few years ago.
6
: to come into existence
Hominids appeared late in the evolutionary chain.
Examples of appear in a Sentence
She appears a nice enough person.
Winning the election appears unlikely at this point.
One by one, the stars appeared in the sky.
The sun began to appear from behind the clouds.
The airplanes seemed to appear out of nowhere.
The storm disappeared as suddenly as it had appeared.
The cat appears at our kitchen door every morning.
One of the guests appeared a few minutes late.
He appeared a little before eight last night.
Recent Examples on the Web
Fuentes then grabs the phone, takes it inside the house and appears to lock the door, and the video ends.
—
Bruna Horvath, NBC News, 14 Nov. 2024
That mystery appears finally solved thanks to researchers in Purdue University’s Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences (EAPS).
—Andrew Paul, Popular Science, 14 Nov. 2024
Loading your audio article In January, a security camera captured unnerving footage: what appeared to be a bear had forced its way into a Rolls Royce parked outside a home in the Southern California resort community of Lake Arrowhead, gouged the seats and thrashed the interior.
—Grant Stringer, The Mercury News, 13 Nov. 2024
Education and community engagement appear to be two areas of unique strength for Shelley, who even in a brief interview spoke passionately and persuasively about the power of music.
—Samantha Dunn, Orange County Register, 13 Nov. 2024
See all Example Sentences for appear 
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Bruna Horvath, NBC News, 14 Nov. 2024
That mystery appears finally solved thanks to researchers in Purdue University’s Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences (EAPS).
—Andrew Paul, Popular Science, 14 Nov. 2024
Loading your audio article In January, a security camera captured unnerving footage: what appeared to be a bear had forced its way into a Rolls Royce parked outside a home in the Southern California resort community of Lake Arrowhead, gouged the seats and thrashed the interior.
—Grant Stringer, The Mercury News, 13 Nov. 2024
Education and community engagement appear to be two areas of unique strength for Shelley, who even in a brief interview spoke passionately and persuasively about the power of music.
—Samantha Dunn, Orange County Register, 13 Nov. 2024
See all Example Sentences for appear
Dictionary Entries Near appear
Cite this Entry
“Appear.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/appear. Accessed 28 Nov. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
appear
verb
ap·pear
ə-ˈpi(ə)r 
1
: to come into sight : become plain : show
stars appeared in the sky
2
: to present oneself formally (as to answer a charge)
appear in court
3
: seem sense 1, look
things are not always as they appear
appears to be tired
4
: to come before the public
appears on television
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