The simple present tense of aparecer is used to describe actions that are happening right now or that occur habitually. For example, El fantasma aparece en la casa abandonada. (The ghost appears in the abandoned house.)

Aparecer is a spelling-changing verb that follows the -cer to -zca pattern in certain conjugations. This means the c changes to zc before the vowels a and o.

Conjugations

Conjugations of Aparecer (to appear) in the Present Tense tense (Latin American Spanish):

Aparecer generally means to appear or show up, but has several different meanings in the Present Tense, some of which might surprise you.

To appear or show up: For example, El gato aparece en el jardín cada mañana. (The cat appears in the garden every morning.)

To come into existence: For example, Nuevas ideas aparecen en mi mente constantemente. (New ideas appear in my mind constantly.)

To be published or released: For example, Un nuevo libro de ese autor aparece este mes. (A new book by that author appears this month.)

To seem or give the impression of: For example, Juan aparece cansado hoy. (Juan appears tired today.)

Colloquial: To show up unexpectedly: For example, ¡Aparece de la nada cuando menos lo esperas! (He appears out of nowhere when you least expect it!)

Rude: To show one’s face: For example, ¡Aparece tu cara fea por aquí otra vez! (Your ugly face appears around here again!)

Examples

Examples of Aparecer in the Present Tense

Cada mañana aparezco en la oficina a las 8 en punto. (Every morning I show up at the office at 8 o’clock sharp.)

Los actores aparecen en el escenario cuando se abre el telón. (The actors appear on stage when the curtain opens.)

¿A qué hora aparece el sol por la mañana? (What time does the sun appear in the morning?)

Mis amigos y yo aparecemos en la fiesta alrededor de las 10 pm. (My friends and I show up at the party around 10 pm.)

El fantasma aparece cada noche a la medianoche, dicen. (The ghost appears every night at midnight, they say.)

Cuando hago una búsqueda en Google, los resultados aparecen en cuestión de segundos. (When I do a Google search, the results appear in a matter of seconds.)

En la primavera, las flores aparecen y todo se ve más vivo. (In spring, flowers appear and everything looks more alive.)

El ícono de la aplicación aparece en la pantalla de inicio de mi teléfono. (The app icon appears on my phone’s home screen.)

Cuando pongo la olla al fuego, el vapor aparece después de unos minutos. (When I put the pot on the stove, steam appears after a few minutes.)

En las películas de terror, el monstruo aparece de repente para asustar a la gente. (In horror movies, the monster suddenly appears to scare people.)

Cada vez que apareces, traes buena energía a la habitación. (Every time you show up, you bring good energy to the room.)

Las estrellas aparecen en el cielo nocturno cuando se pone el sol. (The stars appear in the night sky when the sun sets.)

Cuando aparecemos en un lugar nuevo, siempre tratamos de ser respetuosos con la cultura local. (When we show up in a new place, we always try to be respectful of the local culture.)

El menú contextual aparece cuando hago clic derecho en el ratón. (The context menu appears when I right-click the mouse.)

Aunque no lo vemos, el aire aparece en todas partes a nuestro alrededor. (Although we can’t see it, air appears everywhere around us.)

Conjugations with English Translations

Conjugations of Aparecer (to appear) in the Present Tense tense (Latin American Spanish) with English Translations:

This post covers Latin American Spanish. For Castilian Spanish, click here

Synonyms

The Present tense is also known as the Simple Present, Present Simple, Present Tense, or Present Indicative in English, and as Presente de Indicativo, Presente Simple, Tiempo Presente, or Indicativo Presente in Spanish.