to appear to be something or to do something : to have a quality, appearance, etc., that shows or suggests a particular characteristic, feeling, etc. —often followed by to + verb —often used in the phrases seem like, seem as if, and seem as though
—used with it to make a statement about what appears to be true based on what is known
—used to make a statement less definite or more polite—followed by to + verb —often used in negative statements
