surface

American  

[sur-fis] / ˈsɜr fɪs /

noun

• surfaces
  plural

1. the outer face, outside, or exterior boundary of a thing; outermost or uppermost layer or area.

2. any face of a body or thing.

   the six surfaces of a cube.

3. extent or area of outer face; superficial area.

4. the outward appearance, especially as distinguished from the inner nature.

   to look below the surface of a matter.

5. Geometry. any figure having only two dimensions; part or all of the boundary of a solid.

6. land or sea transportation, rather than air, underground, or undersea transportation.

7. Aeronautics. an airfoil.

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adjective

1. of, on, or pertaining to the surface; external.

2. apparent rather than real; superficial.

   to be guilty of surface judgments.

3. of, relating to, or via land or sea.

   surface mail.

4. Linguistics. belonging to a late stage in the transformational derivation of a sentence; belonging to the surface structure.

verb (used with object)

• surfaces,
  present (3rd person singular)
• surfaced,
  past participle,  past
• surfacing
  present participle

1. to finish the surface of; give a particular kind of surface to; make even or smooth.

2. to bring to the surface; cause to appear openly.

   Depth charges surfaced the sub. So far we've surfaced no applicants.

verb (used without object)

• surfaces,
  present (3rd person singular)
• surfaced,
  past participle,  past
• surfacing
  present participle

1. to rise to the surface.

   The submarine surfaced after four days.

2. to work on or at the surface.

surface British  

/ ˈsɜːfɪs /

noun

1. 1. the exterior face of an object or one such face

   2. ( as modifier )

      surface gloss

2. 1. the area or size of such a face

   2. ( as modifier )

      surface measurements

3. material resembling such a face, with length and width but without depth

4. 1. the superficial appearance as opposed to the real nature

   2. ( as modifier )

      a surface resemblance

5. geometry

   1. the complete boundary of a solid figure

   2. a continuous two-dimensional configuration

6. 1. the uppermost level of the land or sea

   2. ( as modifier )

      surface transportation

7. to emerge; become apparent

8. to all appearances

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verb

1. to rise or cause to rise to or as if to the surface (of water, etc)

2. (tr) to treat the surface of, as by polishing, smoothing, etc

3. (tr) to furnish with a surface

4. (intr) mining

   1. to work at or near the ground surface

   2. to wash surface ore deposits

5. (intr) to become apparent; emerge

6. informal (intr)

   1. to wake up

   2. to get up

surface Idioms  

1. see on the surface; scratch the surface.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• nonsurface
  noun
• surfacer
  noun
• surfaceless
  adjective
• unsurfaced
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• surfaces
  plural

Participles

• surfacing
  present
• surfaced
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• surface
  simple
• surfaces
  simple
• have surfaced
  perfect
• has surfaced
  perfect
• am surfacing
  progressive
• are surfacing
  progressive
• is surfacing
  progressive
• have been surfacing
  perfect progressive
• has been surfacing
  perfect progressive

Past

• surfaced
  simple
• had surfaced
  perfect
• was surfacing
  progressive
• were surfacing
  progressive
• had been surfacing
  perfect progressive

Future

• will surface
  simple
• will have surfaced
  perfect
• will be surfacing
  progressive
• will have been surfacing
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of surface

First recorded in 1605–15; from French; equivalent to sur- ¹ + face; apparently modeled on Latin superficies superficies

Explanation

The surface is the outside of anything. The earth, a basketball, and even your body have a surface. A surface is the top layer of something. The surface of the moon is rocky, with a lot of craters, while the surface of the earth has a lot of water. Sandpaper has a rough surface; a balloon has a smooth but rubbery surface. When we use the word surface, it usually means there is a lot of stuff underneath. That applies to our use of surface to mean outward mood, as in "You look happy on the surface, but I know you're angry on the inside."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

surface surfaces surfaced surfacing

The gold was found stashed in a bag under a stone cellar surface while workers were laying sewage pipes for a new homeless shelter.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 16, 2026

One 2026 study found unstable surface training significantly improves postural control, or the ability to remain stable, in older adults.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 16, 2026

In fact, Morocco's economy is booming, at least on the surface, but experts say the persistent allure of life on the other side of the border is rooted in deeper anxieties, particularly among the young.

From Barron's ● Aug. 15, 2026

Male ski jumpers were rumoured to be using fillers to increase the surface area of their suits so they could jump further.

From BBC ● Aug. 15, 2026

I tumble backward, land with a thud on the very hard surface of reality.

From "Red Flags and Butterflies" by Sheryl Azzam

On the second floor, a generous dining space and an open kitchen with marble surfaces, warm-wood cabinetry, and one of the building’s original steel trusses await.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 14, 2026

The eatery features Midcentury Modern touches with curved cherry wood walls and paneled ceilings, as well as illuminated white onyx Corian surfaces.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 11, 2026

Their surfaces do not contain dangling bonds, which makes it difficult to grow an extremely thin dielectric film evenly across them.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 9, 2026

Achieving that, Tiwari says, requires redesigning streets by narrowing traffic lanes, altering road surfaces and introducing other traffic-calming measures.

From BBC ● Aug. 6, 2026

Precisely ground, the mirrors were able to start fires and project images onto flat surfaces, camera lucida fashion.

From "1491" by Charles C. Mann

The dynamic also surfaced on Monday, as major equity indexes sank while yields pushed higher.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 12, 2026

Salary-cap circumvention first surfaced with Leonard during his free agency in 2019 after he led the Raptors to the NBA championship.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 7, 2026

AstraZeneca was already facing pressure before reports of a possible transaction surfaced.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 6, 2026

As part of a Gen Z contingent whose appreciation for birding has surfaced on social media, Megan also shares her sightings on TikTok and Instagram, external.

From BBC ● Jul. 27, 2026

Rumors surfaced that the series had been fixed, rumors that gained credence when just before the first game, the betting odds that had overwhelmingly favored the White Sox dropped to even.

From "1919 The Year That Changed America" by Martin W. Sandler

Somewhere in the North Atlantic, the floats will keep diving, drifting and surfacing - measuring a circulation that is still moving, still mysterious, and still capable of surprise.

From BBC ● Jul. 14, 2026

This comes as old and new challenges are surfacing.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 12, 2026

Chunks of Trump’s beloved “American flag blue” paint job are surfacing.

From Slate ● Jun. 19, 2026

Instead of surfacing web results, the new Siri can actually answer your question.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 14, 2026

They would trickle out in dribs and drabs, memories surfacing suddenly, prompted by the merest thread, the way memories often do.

From "Little Fires Everywhere" by Celeste Ng

Related Words

• area
• expanse
• exterior
• facade
• face
• façade
• level
• side
• skin
• top