Appearance

/əˈpɪə.ɹəns/ · noun

Meaning

The act of appearing or coming into sight; the act of becoming visible to the eye..

Definitions by Sense

1. The act of appearing or coming into sight; the act of becoming visible to the eye.
2. A thing seen; a phenomenon; an apparition.
3. The way something looks; personal presence
4. Apparent likeness; the way which something or someone appears to others.
5. (philosophy, theology) That which is not substance, essence, hypostasis; the outward reality as opposed to the underlying reality
6. The act of appearing in a particular place, or in society, a company, or any proceedings; a coming before the public in a particular character.
7. (law) An instance of someone coming into a court of law to be part of a trial, lawsuit or other proceeding, either in person or represented by an attorney or such like; a court appearance
8. (medicine) Chiefly used by nurses: the act of defecation by a patient.

Example Sentences

His sudden appearance surprised me.

There was a strange appearance in the sky.

And now am come to ſee of whom ſuch noiſe Hath walk'd about, and each limb to ſurvey, If thy appearance anſwer loud report.

The most rapid and most seductive transition in all human nature is that which attends the palliation of a ravenous appetite.[…]Can those harmless but refined fellow-diners be the selfish cads whose gluttony and personal appearance so raised your contemptuous wrath on your arrival?

Some people say I'm shallow because I care so much about my appearance.

'Never be taken in by false appearancesʻ was Swift's habitual satirical message. 'In most Corporeal Beings, which have fallen under my Cognizance, the Outside hath been infinitely preferable to the In,' he elsewhere proclaimed. … The sordid reality beneath the mask haunted him: was all civilisation just dirt and derangement at heart? […] Evidently man was not the homo rationalis he pretended to be but rather, at best, homo rationis capax ─ a creature capable of rationality, though by implication falling short.

KAWS’s first sculptures were limited edition toys for the Japanese brand Bounty Hunter, and the stylised figures distributed around YSP in a variety of postures – shielding their eyes from the sun, seated in apparent contemplation or leading a child-sized version of themselves over the sward – have the appearance of gigantic toys, with their instant legibility and machine-honed surfaces.

And on the day that the tabernacle was reared up the cloud covered the tabernacle, namely, the tent of the testimony: and at even there was upon the tabernacle as it were the appearance of fire, until the morning.

Synonyms for appearance

Antonyms for appearance

Related Words

Word Forms

• appearances
• appearaunce

Usage Notes

Choose a synonym only when it preserves the intended meaning, tone, and grammar of the full sentence.

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