seem

verb

ˈsēm 

seemed; seeming; seems

intransitive verb

1

: to appear to the observation or understanding

2

: to give the impression of being

Synonyms of seem

• look
• feel
• sound
• appear

Examples of seem in a Sentence

What they're doing doesn't seem right to me.

I tried to cheer them up because they seemed depressed.

Recent Examples on the Web

Anger that the world seems not to be listening to the pain of so many Palestinians. —Jeremy Diamond, CNN Money, 13 June 2026

That seems important given that the Dawgs currently have zero DB commitments among their 13 pledges for the current cycle. —Jeff Sentell, AJC.com, 12 June 2026

To some experts, the timelines and scale just seem overeager. —Chris Stokel-Walker, Scientific American, 12 June 2026

Spielberg at first blush may seem an odd choice, but not to Swift. —Cathy Applefeld Olson, Forbes.com, 12 June 2026

Word History

Etymology

Middle English semen to appear to be, be fitting, of Scandinavian origin; akin to Old Norse sœma to honor, sœmr fitting, samr same — more at same

First Known Use

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for seem

• beam
• bream
• cream
• creme
• deem
• dream
• gleam
• meme
• ream
• scheme
• scream
• seam

Kids Definition

seem

verb

ˈsēm 

1

: to give the impression of being : appear

the request seems reasonable

2

a

: to appear to a person's own mind or opinion

can't seem to solve the problem

b

: to appear to be

there seems no reason for worry