ostensibly
adverb
os·ten·si·bly
ä-ˈsten(t)-sə-blē 
ə-
1
: in a manner that conceals or may conceal what is true or real
The story is ostensibly fiction, but some of the events are based on real life.
… this was the first time that he had been ostensibly frank as to his purpose while really concealing it.—
Thomas Hardy
Thomas Hardy2
: to all outward appearances
Ostensibly, the reason for his visit was to see an old friend.
… invited me to come inside with him, ostensibly to say good-bye to the hippie friend but actually to smoke pot …—Donna Tartt
Donna TarttExamples of ostensibly in a Sentence
The god of cleanliness is never satisfied. In America, the ostensibly egalitarian nature of society meant that cleanliness was used to mark status.
—Joanna Bourke, Harper's, April 2008
Budweiser and Miller, on the other hand, have eroded their credibility by launching brands ostensibly produced by microbreweries. They've been found out, with resulting customer cynicism.
—James R. Rosenfield, Demographics, December 1997
The day after Clinton made his seemingly proactive statement, he met with congressional leaders of both parties, ostensibly to press the case for military intervention.
—Michael Kelly, New Yorker, 19 Dec.1994
ostensibly a university student studying abroad, he was actually an espionage agent
Joanna Bourke, Harper's, April 2008
Budweiser and Miller, on the other hand, have eroded their credibility by launching brands ostensibly produced by microbreweries. They've been found out, with resulting customer cynicism.
—James R. Rosenfield, Demographics, December 1997
The day after Clinton made his seemingly proactive statement, he met with congressional leaders of both parties, ostensibly to press the case for military intervention.
—Michael Kelly, New Yorker, 19 Dec.1994
ostensibly a university student studying abroad, he was actually an espionage agent
Recent Examples on the Web
What did this bill have to do with a private company that ostensibly makes family-friendly entertainment and runs all-ages theme parks?
—Ian Miller Outkick, FOXNews.com, 27 Apr. 2026
While the investigation was ostensibly about cost overruns in a Fed renovation project, many observers, including Tillis, considered that pretext.
—Andrea Riquier, USA Today, 26 Apr. 2026
This is not the first time Anthropic has received investment from Google, even though Google is ostensibly competing with Anthropic over AI models.
—ArsTechnica, 24 Apr. 2026
Even for a team that was ostensibly built with pitching and defense in mind, that isn’t going to get the job done, and following the game Duran acknowledged the club is feeling the pressure.
—Mac Cerullo, Boston Herald, 23 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for ostensibly
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Ian Miller Outkick, FOXNews.com, 27 Apr. 2026
While the investigation was ostensibly about cost overruns in a Fed renovation project, many observers, including Tillis, considered that pretext.
—Andrea Riquier, USA Today, 26 Apr. 2026
This is not the first time Anthropic has received investment from Google, even though Google is ostensibly competing with Anthropic over AI models.
—ArsTechnica, 24 Apr. 2026
Even for a team that was ostensibly built with pitching and defense in mind, that isn’t going to get the job done, and following the game Duran acknowledged the club is feeling the pressure.
—Mac Cerullo, Boston Herald, 23 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for ostensibly
Cite this Entry
“Ostensibly.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ostensibly. Accessed 28 Apr. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
ostensibly
adverb
os·ten·si·bly
ä-ˈsten(t)-sə-blē
ə-
: to all outward appearances : seemingly
a statement ostensibly true
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