ostensibly
Syllables: os·ten·si·blyUK/ɒˈstɛn.sɪ.bli//ɑˈstɛn.sə.bli/
ostensibly adverb: seemingly, apparently, on the surface; supposedly, according to representations or implications made by someone (especially when their motives are suspected by others).
Adverb
ostensibly (not comparable)
- Seemingly, apparently, on the surface; supposedly, according to representations or implications made by someone (especially when their motives are suspected by others).
- Near-synonyms: reportedly, reputedly, purportedly, putatively, rumoredly, supposedly, allegedly, possibly, probably, likely, plausibly, presumably; see also Thesaurus:ostensibly
- His interest in the railway was ostensibly a hobby, but people began wondering why he was taking photos of specific trains and specific equipment.
- Synonyms:
- apparently, arguably, at first blush, ostensively, seemingly, reportedly, reputedly, purportedly, putatively, rumoredly
ostensibly meaning in Tamil, Urdu, Malayalam and Arabic
ostensibly in Tamil
- மேம்போக்காக, மேலோட்டமாக
ostensibly in Urdu
- ظاہراً
ostensibly in Malayalam
- കാഴ്ചയ്ക്ക്, പുറമേ, പ്രകടമായി
ostensibly in Arabic
- ostensibly
- فِي مَا يَبْدُو fī mā yabdū, عَلَى مَا يَبْدُو ʕalā mā yabdū
More languagesFewer languages
- ostensibly in Persian
- به ظاهر, ظاهرا zāhiran
Examples of ostensibly in a sentence
- Her interest in his welfare was ostensibly charitable and magnanimous, but people began wondering who was going to inherit his assets when he died.
- On 13 June the peshwa signed a new treaty, ostensibly complying with the demands of the British government[…]1889, Leslie Stephen, Sidney Lee, Dictionary of National Biography:
- Up to a year or two ago it had been the custom to kill horses in the yards — ostensibly for fertilizer; […]1905 April–October, Upton Sinclair, chapter IX, in The Jungle, New York, N.Y.: Doubleday, Page & Company, published 26 February 1906, →OCLC:
- People strive to achieve perfection — ostensibly an honorable goal — but complete perfection is dangerous.2007, Brian Herbert, Kevin J Anderson, Sandworms of Dune:
- He had come to London, ostensibly to consult a Harley Street doctor about a stomach ailment.2007 April 10, Howard Blum, “Who Killed Ashraf Marwan?”, in The New York Times, archived from the original on 26 Apr 2023, retrieved 18 Sep...
Synonyms of ostensibly
- apparently
- arguably
- at first blush
- ostensively
- seemingly
- reportedly
- reputedly
- purportedly
- putatively
- rumoredly
16 more synonymsFewer synonyms
Antonyms
Origin of ostensibly
From ostensible + -ly.
Questions about ostensibly
- What does ostensibly mean?
- Ostensibly means seemingly, apparently, on the surface; supposedly, according to representations or implications made by someone (especially when their motives are suspected by others).
- What is ostensibly in Tamil?
- Ostensibly in Tamil is மேம்போக்காக, மேலோட்டமாக. See Ostensibly meaning in Tamil.
- How do you use ostensibly in a sentence?
- Her interest in his welfare was ostensibly charitable and magnanimous, but people began wondering who was going to inherit his assets when he died.
- What part of speech is ostensibly?
- Ostensibly is an adverb.
- How do you pronounce ostensibly?
- Ostensibly is pronounced /ɒˈstɛn.sɪ.bli/ (UK).
Words near ostensibly in the dictionary
Source and license
Adapted from Wiktionary: ostensibly (page history and authors); ostensibly (Tamil Wiktionary) (page history and authors); ostensibly (Urdu Wiktionary) (page history and authors); ostensibly (Malayalam Wiktionary) (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.
Last updated:
Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: en-us-ostensibly.ogg, en-au-ostensibly.ogg.
Cite this entry: “ostensibly.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/ostensibly. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.