seemingly

adverb

seem·​ing·​ly ˈsē-miŋ-lē 

: outwardly or apparently

—used to indicate how something appears or seems

a seemingly simple problem [=a problem that seems simple]

a seemingly endless project [=a project that seems to have no end]

The balance of nature—an ideal state in which every species is in its right place—is seemingly being upended.

—Bryan Walsh

These were years in which seemingly every city authority from Adelaide to Oslo had set its heart on the construction of an unsurpassably iconic building …

—Ellis Woodman

Then, in 1929, taste arbiter Emily Post sanctioned a seemingly irreversible shift in manners: "No rule of etiquette is of less importance than which fork we use."

—Douglas Brenner

Dumbledore had most of the remaining Death Eaters grouped in the middle of the room, seemingly immobilized by invisible ropes.

—J. K. Rowling

Synonyms of seemingly

• apparently
• supposedly
• ostensibly
• evidently
• probably
• presumably

Examples of seemingly in a Sentence

a seemingly contented baby who was fast asleep in his crib

Recent Examples on the Web

Once inside the arena, footage captured a less impressive group of demonstrators coordinating the wave with signs and sitting in stadium seats, seemingly warming up from the bitter conditions outside. —Alexandra Koch, FOXNews.com, 24 Jan. 2026

The California Highway Patrol's North Sacramento division said one car was being driven erratically, seemingly doing donuts, when the driver crashed into five parked cars. —Richard Ramos, CBS News, 23 Jan. 2026

Researchers with the University of Miami and the Network Contagion Research Institute (NCRI) found that ChatGPT will magnify particular political views — especially those labeled as authoritarian — after seemingly benign user interactions. —Kayla Hayempour, NBC news, 23 Jan. 2026

This time, Industry unfolds as a sharp, uncomfortable on-the-nose commentary of modern politics, media, technocrats and the seemingly-immovable aristocracy of British society. —Chloe Laws, Condé Nast Traveler, 23 Jan. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

circa 1616, in the meaning defined above