Manifest means to make something visible or obvious that was previously hidden or unclear. When your nervousness manifests as fidgeting hands during a presentation, your inner feeling shows up in an outward way people can see. When dark clouds manifest in the sky, a storm that was building becomes visible and real.

The word suggests something becoming clear and unmistakable. A student's hard work might manifest in improved grades. A country's economic problems might manifest as closed factories and unemployment. Scientists talk about how diseases manifest with specific symptoms: a fever and cough might manifest when someone catches the flu.

Manifest can also work as an adjective meaning obvious or clear to everyone. If something is manifestly unfair, everyone can see the injustice plainly. A manifestly false statement is one that's obviously untrue.

When something manifests, there's no longer any doubt or mystery about its presence.

Less commonly, manifest is also a noun: a list of cargo or passengers on a ship or plane, making visible exactly who or what is aboard.