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Added 6 October 2026

appearance

/əˈpɪə.ɹəns/ noun

In Latin: speciēs, vultum Wiktionary

noun Definition from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). Pronunciation from Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org. More about appearance at Wordnik → Where our words come from →

The act of appearing or coming into sight; the act of becoming visible to the eye.
His sudden appearance surprised me.
A thing seen; a phenomenon; an apparition.
There was a strange appearance in the sky.
The way something looks; personal presence

Origin

Borrowed from Middle French apparence, from Latin apparentia, from appareo. Morphologically appear + -ance. Doublet of apparence and apparency. Displaced native Old English hīew (“the way something looks or seems”) and ætīewednes (“act of appearing or coming into view”).

From Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org (CC BY-SA)

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