Seem vs. Appear; Seem to be happy vs. Appear to be happy

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Seem = Suggests how something looks or seems to look; used to describe a perceived condition; also suggests that something is true when we are not certain or when we want to be polite.

 

Appear = Used to talk about facts and events describing an observable condition; denotes that the opinion is based on a general visual impression. It also suggests that we do not quite believe that somebody or something really is as they seem:

His car seems/ appears to have stuck in a traffic jam.
It seems a best bet to take a taxi to the airport.
There seems to be some confusion over who is actually presiding over the function.
It seems crazy that we should do it all over again.    √
It appears crazy that we should do it all over again.  ✗

 

More examples:
It seems like she’ll never come around.
It seems as if they’ve parted their ways following their disagreement about the company’s title.
They seem to have lost their way; they’d better take help of Google maps?
The car seems to be in good condition, so worth its price.

The major difference between ‘seem’ and ‘appear’ is the ‘certainty-uncertainty’ effect. With ‘seem’, the observer exhibits the uncertainty while with ‘appear’, the uncertainty is exhibited by the attributes of the observed person or thing which can also be deceptive:

She appears very upset – she has got some bad news.
There appears to be some problem with the ATM; I can’t get the money out.
The minister doesn’t appear to know about the number of women in the Civil Service.
Things did not go as they appeared – everything fell flat.

 

More examples:
He didn’t appear so smart but he fixed the leaking tap in no time.
I didn’t want to appear rude – it’s just that there was no room in the car.
Is she as worried about Martha as she appears?
In the beginning, everything appeared normal.
The prisoners appeared (to be) rather contented with what they get.
She appears to have run off with his friend and can’t be traced now.

So, we can conclude that ‘appear’ is less common than ‘seem’ and ‘appear’ is a bit more formal too.

 

Appear + adjective + noun:

He appears quite a nervous candidate for the interview. (less often; in more formal situations)

 

It appears + as if/ as though/ that:

It appears as if Mr. Wilson hasn’t got his facts straight.
It appears as though the police haven’t verified the facts before arresting him.
It appears that she hasn’t been called for the audition.
He likes to appear as if he knows everything about the automobiles, but in reality he was only pretending.
It appears that none of the occupants of the car were injured.
It would appear (that) (= it seems that) no authorities have granted permission for the demonstration to take place.
She was extremely angry but now appears calm.
Though in the beginning he appeared (to be) rather stranger, later on we exchanged friendly greetings.

 

Appear + to infinitive:

He appears to hate me – even he’s causing others in the class to dislike me.
There appears to be some human error which caused the air crash.
It appears to me (that) he has no experience to manage large projects. (= I don’t think…)

 

It appears not/so:

“Are the kids busy with their homework?” “It appears not/so.”
“I think he has left the house by the back door.” “So it appears.”

 

‘Try to appear’ or ‘try to seem’:

Jack tried to appear calm when he was interrogated by the officers about who he was and what he had been doing.                        (Not tried to seem….)

 

 

Unreal Past

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Wish + (that) + past simple

We often use past tense to refer to an unreal situation. Though the tense is in the past, we, in fact, talk about some hypothetical situation – something that didn’t happen: a state or situation in the present that we regret but do not have any control:

I wish I brought the kids to the party.

He wishes he was muscular.

She wishes she was driving home with Jack.

I wish I was/ were

Past subjunctive = Used in the same form as the past simple tense; denotes present or future time:

I wish (that) she was/were a bit slimmer. (she is fat)

I wish you were not getting a cold. You’re all wet.

Past perfect subjunctive = Used in the same form as the past perfect tense; denotes past time:

If you had got up a bit earlier, you wouldn’t have missed the train. (you didn’t get up earlier)

We use the unreal tenses in second and third conditionals to express unreal or hypothetical situations and they are usually followed by wish, as if, as though, if only, it’s (high) time, would rather and would sooner, etc. to suggest that the condition they introduce is imaginary:

Supposing that you became the Prime Minister, Mr. Magento, what would you say?

If you got caught in the rain, I would feed the dog.

What if this opportunity didn’t turn up at just the right time for you?

If only I had my own car, I could drop the children off at the school.

What would you do if you inherited a fortune from your grandfather? (you probably won’t inherit a fortune)

When these expressions introduce hypothetical situations – something that didn’t happen – in the past, they are followed by the past perfect:

If only he’d listen to what she’s saying.

What if the child had touched that live electric wire?             (the child didn’t touch)

Supposing I had borrowed $20 from you. Would you have given it to me? (I didn’t borrow)

Wish + (that) + past perfect

When we talk about situations in the past that we feel sorry for or actions that we regret, we use the verb to wish followed by the past perfect:

I wish (that) the noise of the traffic hadn’t woken me (up) so early.

He wishes (that) he’d never got involved in the drug scene.

I wish I hadn’t answered back in the class.

He wishes he hadn’t taken a shortcut to town.

I wish I had spoken to Sarah before Freddie proposed to her.

Wish + (that) + would

When we talk about something we are not happy about and we are annoyed about something that is or is not happening, or we complain about something, we use to wish followed by would + infinitive:

I wish that elderly gentleman would stop coughing all the way through the concert! (He is coughing; it would be better if he didn’t.)

I wish they wouldn’t make a mess of their marriage. (they make a mess of their marriage; it would be better if they didn’t)

I wish he would stop grumbling about poor wages and long hours.

Wishing + (that) + would

We also use wish in the continuous form in informal situations:
He let his parents down by stealing. I’m just wishing he would go away!

Be careful:

We do not use wish instead of hope, when we want something to happen in the future or when we want something to have happened in the past:

I hope the blizzard doesn’t just affect the Midlands tomorrow. (Not I wish the blizzard……..)

I hope she didn’t miss a single episode of her favourite soap opera. (Not I wish she didn’t miss….)

I’d rather

We also use ‘I’d rather + past tense’, when we want a course of action to be done by someone else or prefer someone else to do that:

I’d rather you stayed a bit longer.

He’d rather you helped him clean out the stables.

I’d rather you didn’t tease him about his weight.

In the following sentences, we are putting emphasis to show our desire:

I’d rather you patched things up with her after your row. (instead of making war)

He’d rather you talked about your exams. (instead of going out)

He’d rather you helped him finish the household chores. (instead of whiling away)

As if vs. As though

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As if = Used to express that something is unlikely and should not be considered
As though = The same as ‘as if’
The difference between ‘as if’ and ‘as though’ is subtle and both of them can be used interchangeably. However, ‘as if’ is more common than ‘as though’:

She acts as if she were Cleopatra.

It was as if a great weight had been lifted off my back.

He looks as if he has had his lunch.

It looks as though I’ve been here before.

He is nowhere in sight.  It looks as though his car was stuck in traffic.

 

We can use was or were in informal English or conversation, however, in formal writing we use were:
She looked at me as if I were lying.                            (formal)

She looked at me as if I was/were lying.                    (spoken English)

 

If the situation is based on fact or reality, we use a real tense to show present time:

He looks as if he doesn’t like to talk about those years. (he doesn’t like to talk).

He looks as if he has the knowledge of her whereabouts. (he has the knowledge of her whereabouts)

 

We also use a real tense to refer past time, if the situation is true:
He seems as if he hasn’t taken a bath for days. (= he hasn’t taken a bath for days)

 

The Clauses beginning with as if/ as though define an unreal or improbable situation when
they are followed by an unreal tense (the past subjunctive or the past perfect subjunctive).

He looks as if he had no knowledge of her whereabouts. (he gives the impression of not
having any knowledge of her whereabouts, but (probably) has or we don’t know whether
he has or not)

He looks as if he didn’t like to talk about those days. (= he gives the impression that he (probably) doesn’t like to talk about those days or we don’t know whether he likes or not)

 

When the verb preceding as if/ as though is in the past and it (as if/ as though) is followed by past subjunctive, the structure will be:

He looked as if he didn’t like to talk about those days. (= whether he liked or didn’t like to talk can only be inferred from the context).

 

We use the past perfect subjunctive after as if/ as though to denote an unreal past situation.

He seems as if he hadn’t taken a bath for days. (= it seems that he hasn’t taken a bath for days, but he (probably) has or we are not sure of it)

 

If the verb before as if/ as though is in the past, the verb following the as if/ as though comes in the past perfect and the structure of the sentence will be:

He seemed as if he hadn’t taken a bath for days.

 

More example sentences

The old woman says it looks as though her troubles were over.

In the beginning, it looked as though the project would not see the light of day.

Hello! Anybody home? It looks as though everyone else has left. (perhaps everyone has left)

Grandma looked as though she was annoyed by the sound of music.

Lately he’s been bossing us around as though he were the owner of the company.

He looks as though he was running late for the office. (perhaps he was late)

She looked as if she didn’t mind my asking such a personal question. (= whether she was
bothered or not by my asking the personal question can only be inferred from the context).

He looks as if he is an expert on the subject. (= he is an expert)

He looks as if he was/were an expert on the subject. (he gives the impression that he is an expert and we are not sure of it)

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