surface

American  

[sur-fis] / ˈsɜr fɪs /

noun

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)

surfaced, surfacing

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)

surfaced, surfacing

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

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

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

Surface ocean waters, which contain plenty of oxygen, consistently release methane into the atmosphere.

From Science Daily • Apr. 16, 2026

Wright was previously a systems engineer at Bendix Aerospace, and at Nasa was responsible for the Apollo Lunar Surface Experiments Package.

From BBC • Apr. 1, 2026

Last year the U.S. deployed a system called the Mine Countermeasures Unmanned Surface Vehicle.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 17, 2026

The company cited currency headwinds, and the positive effect of its acquisition of Springworks will be offset by the sale of its Surface Solutions business, the analysts say.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 5, 2026

“Ravenel 0515 observation. One thousand feet ceiling with one half mile in light rain with fog. Surface wind light and variable. Ground Approach is standing by. Roger and out.”

From "The Great Santini" by Pat Conroy

Related Words

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