Drag to pan · scroll to zoom
Drag to rotate
Tracing “”…
Where does the word "appear" come from? It comes from Latin apparere, passing through Old French before entering English (1200s).
Read the full story
Where does the word "appear" come from? It comes from Latin apparere, passing through Old French before entering English (1200s).
Appear’s story begins in Latin: apparere meant “to come into view.” 'ad-' plus 'parere', to show oneself. By medieval, the word had taken hold in Old French as aparoir. The same root gives 'apparent' and 'apparition'. It reached English by 1200s as appear. 'appearance' followed. Today, appear means to come into sight; to seem.
- Stage 1 · Latin · ancient apparere "to come into view", 'ad-' plus 'parere', to show oneself.
- Stage 2 · Old French · medieval aparoir "to appear", the same root gives 'apparent' and 'apparition'.
- Stage 3 · English · 1200s appear "to become visible", 'appearance' followed.