as in seemingly
to all outward appearances
he stops by his old office periodically, ostensively just to say "hi"
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for ostensively
Adverb
-
The eerie male voice then read a seemingly random string of numbers.—
Richard Winton,
Los Angeles Times,
10 Mar. 2026 -
On many tables was a seasonal Dungeness crab dish with green-garlic butter, and seemingly on every single table were those butter beans with greens (for tonight, Caraflex cabbage).—
John Metcalfe,
Mercury News,
9 Mar. 2026
Adverb
-
The fuse was apparently connected to an M80-type firework, according to CBS News.—
Thao Nguyen,
USA Today,
9 Mar. 2026
-
And also for Iran itself, where the regime is apparently still in charge of the armed forces even with the successful actions by the Israelis and the Americans.—
Morgan Chalfant,
semafor.com,
9 Mar. 2026
Adverb
-
The Seahawks won it all with a quarterback many people had given up on, a 31-year-old receiver whose best years ostensibly were behind him, and a defensive end from the Dallas Cowboys who had played in just four games the year before.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
9 Mar. 2026
-
His statement was debated on the airwaves and online, and covered in outlets ranging from TMZ to The Hill, a website ostensibly devoted to Beltway politics.—
Louisa Thomas,
New Yorker,
8 Mar. 2026
Adverb
-
Pournouri had alleged that a Netflix documentary two years before the 2018 death of the DJ, whose real name is Tim Bergling, and two posthumously released books defamed him, violating a 2016 agreement that supposedly prevented Bergling from speaking about their partnership.—
Kory Grow,
Rolling Stone,
9 Mar. 2026
-
And when the British army brought their trench coats to the continent, they were kitted out in military features like shoulder epaulettes for indicating rank insignia and metal D-rings that could hold maps, swords (and supposedly) grenades.—
Eric Twardzik,
Robb Report,
9 Mar. 2026
Adverb
-
The Supreme Court evidently agreed.—
Business Columnist,
Los Angeles Times,
6 Mar. 2026
-
My stepmother evidently objected to it.—
Jeanne Phillips,
Mercury News,
2 Mar. 2026
Adverb
-
His decision on retirement presumably included factors far beyond football, as Kelce has career options in entertainment, as well.—
Andrew Greif,
NBC news,
9 Mar. 2026
-
Regime change is presumably impossible without a full-scale invasion of Afghanistan, and that’s never gone well for anyone.—
Mihir Sharma,
Twin Cities,
8 Mar. 2026
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Cite this Entry
“Ostensively.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ostensively. Accessed 10 Mar. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
