1. 相同点
这三个词都可表示“看起来像”、“似乎”,其后均可接形容词、名词、不定式等,且有时可互换。如:
She looks (或seems / appears) (to be) honest. 她似乎很诚实。
He looks (或seems / appears) (to be) an honest man. 他看起来像个诚实人。
2. 不同点
(1) 含义上的不同:look着重由视觉而得出的印象;appear强调外表给人的印象,有时含有一种并不符合实际的感觉;seem常指有一定根据的内心判断,这种判断往往与实际情况比较接近。试比较:
He doesn’t look his age. 他看起来没有他实际年龄那么大。
He seems very young. 他看起来很年轻。
He may appear a fool but actually he’s quite clever. 他看起来也许很傻,但实际上他很聪明。
(2) 结构上的差别:
1) look和seem之后可接like,而appear之后不能接。如;
He looks (或seems) like a fool. 他看上去像个傻瓜。
2) 三者之后均可接不定式,但look后接不定式一般只限于to be。如:
She appears to be leaving. 或他看上去很累了。
He seemed to laugh at us. 她似乎想走了。
He seemed to laugh at us. 他好像在笑我们。
3) 三者均可用于以it开头的句子。但要注意:look之后接as if或as though引导的从句,appear 之后接that引导的从句,而seem之后可接that也可接as if / as though 引导的从句。如:
It looks (或seems) as if you’re right. 看来你似乎是对的。
It appears that I am wrong. 看来是我错了。
It seems that he is ill. 他好像是有病。
注:look 在不以it开头的句子里也可后接as if 或as though。另外,appear 之后有时也可接as if。如:
They looked as if they didn’t care. 他们看起来好像不在乎。
It appears as if they’ve lost interest 看来他们已失去了兴趣。
4)在there be 开头的句子中,可用seem和appear, 而不用look。如:
There seems (或appears) to be something the matter with her. 他看来像是出了什么事似的。