seemly

play

adjective seem·ly \ ˈsēm-lē \

Definition of seemly

seemlier; seemliest

1 a :good-looking, handsome

b :agreeably fashioned :attractive

2 :conventionally proper :decorous

not seemly to brag about oneself

3 :suited to the occasion, purpose, or person :fit

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seemliness

noun

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seemly

adverb

See seemly defined for English-language learners

See seemly defined for kids

Examples of seemly in a Sentence

it would not be seemly to use the memorial service as a forum for your political views
a young man of seemly appearance, robust health, and keen intelligence

Recent Examples of seemly from the Web

Largely thanks to the years that the United States has been fighting the seemly interminable war in Afghanistan, anyone born in 1982 or later has spent at least half of his or her life in a nation at war.

— philip bump, Washington Post, "Here’s how much of your life the United States has been at war," 22 Aug. 2017
In a court hearing on Thursday (July 13), the parents of Charlie Gard, the critically ill baby in Britain, were at odds with their son's hospital over a seemly straightforward fact: The size of their baby's head.

— rachael rettner senior writer, Fox News, "Charlie Gard controversy: Why a baby's head size matters," 17 July 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'seemly.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.