French word

apparaître

Pronunciation

IPA/apaʁɛtʁ/

Meaning

  • verbappear

Example

Le chat apparaît soudain derrière le canapé.

The cat suddenly appears behind the sofa.

Illustration for apparaître (appear)

More examples

Son nom apparaît sur la liste des participants.

His name appears on the list of participants.

Core concept

A hidden person or object suddenly comes into view, while a name or passage becomes visible on a page.

Common phrases

  • apparaître sur la liste

    appear on the list

  • apparaître dans le film

    appear in the film

Similar words

paraître: To appear to have a certain quality from the outside.
se montrer: To show oneself before other people.
surgir: To appear suddenly and unexpectedly.
se révéler: To become evident as a hidden fact or quality comes to light.

Definition in French

Devenir visible soudainement ou se montrer, souvent de façon inattendue; s'emploie aussi pour figurer dans un texte ou une publication.

Word origin

French apparaître derives through Old French from Latin apparere, built from ad- 'to' and parere 'be visible'.

Usage tips

  • For the ordinary intransitive sense of becoming visible, compound tenses normally use être, with agreement: elle est apparue and ils sont apparus.

Other meanings

  • be visibleverb
  • be publishedverb

Opposites

Related words

Word lists with this word