# appearance

Pronunciation: say "uh-PEER-uhns" US /əˈpiɹ.əns/, UK /əˈpɪə.ɹəns/

## Noun

1. The way something looks; the overall impression made by a person's presence.
   - Simple: The way a person or thing looks to other people.
   - _The garden's neglected appearance suggested the owners had been away for months._
   - _His confident appearance put the nervous interviewees at ease._
2. The act of appearing in a particular place, in society, or before the public in a given role.
   - Simple: The act of showing up somewhere, often in front of other people.
   - _The author's appearance at the festival had been advertised for weeks._
   - _He made a brief appearance at the reception before slipping away._
3. The way something seems or presents itself, as distinct from what it really is underneath.
   - Simple: The way something seems, which may be different from what it really is.
   - _The negotiations had the appearance of progress, but nothing was actually agreed._
   - _She maintained an appearance of indifference to hide her disappointment._
4. The act of coming into sight; the moment of becoming visible to the eye.
   - Simple: The moment when something comes into sight.
   - _Astronomers had predicted the comet's appearance for weeks, and on the first clear night it finally rose above the hills._
   - _The first appearance of green shoots signaled the start of spring._
5. An instance of coming before a court of law to take part in a trial or lawsuit, either in person or through an attorney.
   - Simple: The act of coming before a court, in person or through a lawyer, to take part in a legal case.
   - _The defendant's appearance was scheduled for Monday morning._
   - _Her attorney entered an appearance shortly before the hearing began._
6. Something that is seen; a phenomenon or an apparition.
   - Simple: A thing that is seen, sometimes strange or ghostly.
   - _The villagers attributed the strange appearance over the marsh to swamp gas._
   - _Witnesses described the appearance as a glowing ball of light that hung silently above the hills for several minutes._

## Other meanings

- (noun) Chiefly among nurses, a discreet word for a patient's act of defecation.

## Origin

English borrowed 'appearance' from Middle French apparence, which came from Latin apparentia and the verb appareo. It can be analyzed as 'appear' plus the suffix '-ance,' and it replaced the native Old English words hīew and ætīewednes.

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/appearance (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).