as in seemingly
to all outward appearances
he stops by his old office periodically, ostensively just to say "hi"
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for ostensively
Adverb
-
The series follows the slow and halting coming together of Noah, reeling from a broken relationship, and Joanne (Kristen Bell), an agnostic podcaster with seemingly little in common with the spiritual leader.—
Ryan Coleman,
Entertainment Weekly,
30 Oct. 2025 -
At the same time, the present era is an epoch in which wars go on seemingly forever—now simmering, now boiling—without end.—
Elizabeth D. Samet,
Foreign Affairs,
29 Oct. 2025
Adverb
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Generally, what happens to the White House’s trash is secret—at least as of 2018, which was apparently the last time the federal government released any information on where Oval Office garbage goes.—
Nancy Walecki,
The Atlantic,
25 Oct. 2025
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The Lollapalooza show, the group says, was apparently manifested by the guitarist Parkinson.—
Josh Crutchmer,
Rolling Stone,
25 Oct. 2025
Adverb
-
What ostensibly started as a war against the flow of the deadly opioid fentanyl has now ballooned into a far broader clash – spanning rare earths, American soybean exports, technology controls and China’s energy dealings with Russia.—
Jhasua Razo,
CNN Money,
29 Oct. 2025
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The subterfuge saw Colthurst ride his bicycle to Kensington Palace ostensibly to have tea with an old friend (the story was captured in the Netflix series The Crown).—
Simon Perry,
PEOPLE,
28 Oct. 2025
Adverb
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After filming wrapped, someone who supposedly knew everything about the season contacted the women and said that Tamra had been leaking every detail about production.—
Brian Moylan,
Vulture,
31 Oct. 2025
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The new online encyclopedia, which suffered technical difficulties upon launch, uses xAI’s Grok large language model to pull information and supposedly prioritize objectivity.—
Reed Albergotti,
semafor.com,
29 Oct. 2025
Adverb
-
American leaders should not hesitate to rein in Taiwan’s evidently reckless leader, perhaps with a private warning.—
Lyle Goldstein,
Time,
23 Oct. 2025
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Since the skirt was so evidently the outfit's statement piece, Biles simply paired it with a form-fitting, white long sleeve and white, knee-high boots.—
Skyler Caruso,
PEOPLE,
22 Oct. 2025
Adverb
-
Those ideas presumably included Kirk’s anti-trans stance, given that her own daughter is trans.—
Larisha Paul,
Rolling Stone,
29 Oct. 2025
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The changes could, presumably, cover the entire county, but there is no timetable for passage of the ordinance.—
Phillip Molnar,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
29 Oct. 2025
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Cite this Entry
“Ostensively.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ostensively. Accessed 4 Nov. 2025.
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