ostensibly

[o-sten-suh-blee]

adverb

1. in appearance only; supposedly.

   The event was ostensibly for charity, but he mainly used it to promote his new book.

Other Word Forms

• nonostensibly adverb
• unostensibly adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of ostensibly¹

First recorded in 1760–70; ostensib(le) ( def. ) + -ly ( def. )

Example Sentences

She was the headmistress of a Christian boarding school for girls that promoted traditional values while ostensibly accepting the changes required by the new order.

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Marines and sailors invaded and occupied the port of Veracruz, ostensibly to block German arms shipments to the government of Mexican President Victoriano Huerta.

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John Stones showed his class and versatility in a hybrid role in Tirana, ostensibly in his usual central defensive position but stepping into midfield when England were in possession.

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On Sept. 5, Beirut declined to adopt explicitly its own army’s disarmament plan to avoid Shiite discontent after five cabinet ministers from that sect, including the ostensibly “independent” Fadi Makki, walked out of a meeting.

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The book is ostensibly “authored” by McCartney even though it is an oral history that has been edited by Ted Widmer, an estimable historian and a former speechwriter for Bill Clinton.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• evidently 
• officially 
• seemingly 
• supposedly