ostensible
adjective
os·ten·si·ble
ä-ˈsten(t)-sə-bəl 
ə-
1
: intended for display : open to view
2
: being such in appearance : plausible rather than demonstrably true or real
the ostensible purpose for the trip
Did you know?
Ostensible comes from Latin ostendere, meaning "to show," and the word suggests a discrepancy between a declared or implied aim or reason and the true one.
Synonyms
Examples of ostensible in a Sentence
That intelligence and those facts, of course, all pertained to Saddam Hussein's weapons of mass destruction, the war's ostensible casus belli, which we now know did not exist.
—
Frank Rich, New York Review, 6 Apr. 2006
To listen again to "Breaking Up Is Hard to Do"—probably the most relentlessly cheerful song ever written on the ostensible theme of misery—is at once to admire its delicately judged textures and Swiss-watch precision …
—Geoffrey O'Brien, New York Review of Books, 15 Dec. 2005
Its ostensible subject is America's murderous gun culture. Its real subject, of course, is the ravenous ego of its director-star, Michael Moore.
—Scott Berg, Time, 14 July 2003
It's a snarky, glory-thieving place, the world of big-bucks political fund raising. Ostensible grownups can be reduced to screaming toddlers over who gets the credit for bringing in a major donor's gift …
—Viveca Novak, Time, 14 June 1999
the ostensible reason for the meeting turned out to be a trick to get him to the surprise party
Frank Rich, New York Review, 6 Apr. 2006
To listen again to "Breaking Up Is Hard to Do"—probably the most relentlessly cheerful song ever written on the ostensible theme of misery—is at once to admire its delicately judged textures and Swiss-watch precision …
—Geoffrey O'Brien, New York Review of Books, 15 Dec. 2005
Its ostensible subject is America's murderous gun culture. Its real subject, of course, is the ravenous ego of its director-star, Michael Moore.
—Scott Berg, Time, 14 July 2003
It's a snarky, glory-thieving place, the world of big-bucks political fund raising. Ostensible grownups can be reduced to screaming toddlers over who gets the credit for bringing in a major donor's gift …
—Viveca Novak, Time, 14 June 1999
the ostensible reason for the meeting turned out to be a trick to get him to the surprise party
Recent Examples on the Web
His ostensible subject was the human altering and distorting of natural settings.
—Nicholas Dawidoff, The New Yorker, 6 Apr. 2024
In essence, by acting without coordination with its ostensible overlord, Hamas precipitated a dangerous crisis that has threatened to engulf Tehran, as well.
—Joost Hiltermann, Foreign Affairs, 28 Mar. 2024
The website contains pre-save links for both Apple Music and Spotify, and one last tease: an ostensible release date, though the days and months keep changing rapidly with the year 2024 remaining fixed.
—Tomás Mier, Rolling Stone, 23 Mar. 2024
The season’s ostensible mystery just isn’t all that gripping and, unlike Sugar’s mystery, it can’t be solved by attentive viewers.
—Daniel Fienberg, The Hollywood Reporter, 27 Mar. 2024
Nonetheless, the connection of bio-pics to ostensible reality is the hidden power of their success.
—Richard Brody, The New Yorker, 19 Mar. 2024
Such cameras, which were were barred from bedrooms and bathrooms, are now prohibited inside any Airbnb listing regardless of their ostensible purpose or visibility.
—Kate Gibson, CBS News, 11 Mar. 2024
The season ended with a number of big shockers, including ostensible hero Fitz killing Verna Thornton, but more so than that was discovering that the B613 baddie working from the shadows was actually Olivia Pope's own father.
—Ew Staff, EW.com, 8 Jan. 2024
Political Science The federal government’s ostensible aim in estimating the social cost of greenhouse gases is to improve the accuracy and completeness of benefit–cost analyses in regulatory proceedings.
—Marlo Lewis, National Review, 29 Dec. 2023
Nicholas Dawidoff, The New Yorker, 6 Apr. 2024
In essence, by acting without coordination with its ostensible overlord, Hamas precipitated a dangerous crisis that has threatened to engulf Tehran, as well.
—Joost Hiltermann, Foreign Affairs, 28 Mar. 2024
The website contains pre-save links for both Apple Music and Spotify, and one last tease: an ostensible release date, though the days and months keep changing rapidly with the year 2024 remaining fixed.
—Tomás Mier, Rolling Stone, 23 Mar. 2024
The season’s ostensible mystery just isn’t all that gripping and, unlike Sugar’s mystery, it can’t be solved by attentive viewers.
—Daniel Fienberg, The Hollywood Reporter, 27 Mar. 2024
Nonetheless, the connection of bio-pics to ostensible reality is the hidden power of their success.
—Richard Brody, The New Yorker, 19 Mar. 2024
Such cameras, which were were barred from bedrooms and bathrooms, are now prohibited inside any Airbnb listing regardless of their ostensible purpose or visibility.
—Kate Gibson, CBS News, 11 Mar. 2024
The season ended with a number of big shockers, including ostensible hero Fitz killing Verna Thornton, but more so than that was discovering that the B613 baddie working from the shadows was actually Olivia Pope's own father.
—Ew Staff, EW.com, 8 Jan. 2024
Political Science The federal government’s ostensible aim in estimating the social cost of greenhouse gases is to improve the accuracy and completeness of benefit–cost analyses in regulatory proceedings.
—Marlo Lewis, National Review, 29 Dec. 2023
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'ostensible.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near ostensible
Cite this Entry
“Ostensible.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ostensible. Accessed 18 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
ostensible
adjective
os·ten·si·ble
ä-ˈsten(t)-sə-bəl
ə-
: shown outwardly : apparent
the ostensible purpose of his visit
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