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
-
Never follow your boyfriend to college, especially a seemingly mediocre college, as Belly does with Jeremiah to the fictional Finch.—
Vogue,
Vogue,
11 Sep. 2025 -
And each year, the seemingly impossible becomes reality again.—
Michael Deeds,
Idaho Statesman,
10 Sep. 2025
Adverb
-
Borg’s doctors apparently wanted Borg to have such follow-up immediately.—
Bruce Y. Lee,
Forbes.com,
6 Sep. 2025
-
One of them apparently left its best in Kansas City.—
Kansas City Star,
Kansas City Star,
6 Sep. 2025
Adverb
-
That action, even if ostensibly directed at Hamas, is likely to exacerbate tensions not only with Qatar but place increasing stress on the calculus allied Gulf Arab countries make in their dealings with Israel.—
David Mednicoff,
The Conversation,
9 Sep. 2025
-
Comedian John Early’s directorial debut, ostensibly a pastiche of basic-cable TV movies, is not a parody, or a satire, or even a comedy.—
Sam Bodrojan,
IndieWire,
7 Sep. 2025
Adverb
-
This gives the state a supposedly legitimate use of violence.—
Matthew Wills,
JSTOR Daily,
4 Sep. 2025
-
The don, Joe Black (John Malkovich), sends them off to the Vatican, where supposedly the original manuscript actually could be verified and brought back to him.—
Pete Hammond,
Deadline,
3 Sep. 2025
Adverb
-
As such, Mahomes evidently not only is immune to complacency but actually has become more adamant with success.—
Kansas City Star,
Kansas City Star,
4 Sep. 2025
-
Ed Zwick’s father was quite the drinker, evidently the son not as much.—
John Tamny,
Forbes.com,
2 Sep. 2025
Adverb
-
Those leaders presumably enjoy expertise when deciding how to address safety concerns.—
Justin Wingerter,
Denver Post,
10 Sep. 2025
-
Some point out that with the latest high-tech, such as eyeball scans, presumably people could be distinctly and suitably identified.—
Lance Eliot,
Forbes.com,
10 Sep. 2025
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 12 Sep. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share