pojavljati

Pojavljati is an imperfective verb used in several South Slavic languages, including Croatian, Bosnian, Serbian, and Montenegrin. It generally means to appear, to come into view, to arise, or to occur. The form can be used intransitively to describe something that becomes visible or present, and it is commonly used with the reflexive pronoun se to indicate appearance or emergence, especially in descriptions of events, phenomena, or people turning up. The corresponding perfective verb is pojaviti, and the reflexive form is pojaviti se, which conveys a single, completed appearance.

Etymology and related forms: Pojavljati is built from the noun pojava, meaning appearance or emergence, with the prefix po- added to a base related to appearing. Related verbs include pojaviti (to appear, perfective) and pojavljivanje (the act of appearing or emergence). The language family links pojavljati to a broader set of terms dealing with visibility, appearance, and public presence.

Usage notes: In the imperfective aspect, pojavljati often describes repeated, ongoing, or gradual appearances, such as phenomena that come into view over time or actions that occur regularly. In contrast, the perfective pojaviti se denotes a single occurrence or moment of appearance. The exact usage and form can vary slightly by dialect, but the general meaning remains consistent across standard Croatian, Bosnian, Serbian, and Montenegrin.

In sum, pojavljati is an imperfective verb core to discussing the process of appearing or emerging, with a well-established perfective counterpart used for single, completed appearances.