Thread: являться/явиться

Hi. Could someone please go through and list all the uses for the verb являться/явиться. I know that it can mean "to be", and I also know that быть means "to be" also. Could someone please tell me when to use which verb? I would be very greatful for your help.

~Thank you

its almost never ever used exept in books, and even then there are ways of getting around it.

If you want to say "where the building is" - Где находится здание
Or
"What kind of people are there?" - Какие люди бывают там?

there are several words which can be used in place of "to be" (lets not forget быть) so my advice is don't even worry about it. Learn the other words whichj you will actually use.

Moscow - capital of Russia
Moscow represents/IS the capital..

If you want to show emphasis of IS ...concerning cultural buildings etc

Москва - столица России.
Москва является столицей России.

I find this more often used with abstract nouns.

Yeah, because it's bookish style. But even then it's better not to stick it here and there.
And, as one translator told me: "Хорошим переводчикам являются только привидения и то редко".