The Collaborative International Dictionary
Seem \Seem\ (s[=e]m), v. i. [imp. & p. p. Seemed (s[=e]md); p.
pr. & vb. n. Seeming.] [OE. semen to seem, to become,
befit, AS. s[=e]man to satisfy, pacify; akin to Icel. s[ae]ma
to honor, to bear with, conform to, s[ae]mr becoming, fit,
s[=o]ma to beseem, to befit, sama to beseem, semja to
arrange, settle, put right, Goth. samjan to please, and to E.
same. The sense is probably due to the adj. seemly.
To appear, or to appear to be; to have a show or semblance;
to present an appearance; to look; to strike one's
apprehension or fancy as being; to be taken as. ``It now
seemed probable.''
--Macaulay.
Thou picture of what thou seem'st.
--Shak.
All seemed well pleased; all seemed, but were not all.
--Milton.
There is a way which seemeth right unto a man; but the
end thereof are the ways of death.
--Prov. xiv.
12.
It seems, it appears; it is understood as true; it is said.
A prince of Italy, it seems, entertained his
mistress on a great lake.
--Addison.
Syn: To appear; look.
Usage: Seem, Appear. To appear has reference to a thing's
being presented to our view; as, the sun appears; to
seem is connected with the idea of semblance, and
usually implies an inference of our mind as to the
probability of a thing's being so; as, a storm seems
to be coming. ``The story appears to be true,'' means
that the facts, as presented, go to show its truth;
``the story seems to be true,'' means that it has the
semblance of being so, and we infer that it is true.
``His first and principal care being to appear unto
his people such as he would have them be, and to be
such as he appeared.''
--Sir P. Sidney.
Ham. Ay, madam, it is common.
Queen. If it be,
Why seems it so particular with thee?
Ham. Seems, madam! Nay, it is; I know not
``seems.''
--Shak.
Usage examples of "it seems".
For a fact, it seems to me, the farmers are much better organized.
Nothing is really what it seems to be, he says, and when Jurgen gets the chance to fulfill his dreams in the shape of Queen Helena, the unattainable, he shies away because he is afraid of what he might come to know.
To take only one topic: it seems clear that if there is to be a sexual double standard, it must be one we know and not the opposite.
You're probably wondering why it seems so easy when it is supposed to be so hard.
It's so good and kind and dear of you to give us our wishes, and it seems such a pity it should all be wasted just because we are too silly to know what to wish for.