semblance

[ sem-bluhns ]

/ ˈsɛm bləns /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR semblance ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

outward aspect or appearance.

an assumed or unreal appearance; show.

the slightest appearance or trace.

a likeness, image, or copy.

a spectral appearance; apparition.

Nearby words

Origin of semblance

1250–1300; Middle English < Middle French, equivalent to sembl(er) to seem (see resemble) + -ance -ance

SYNONYMS FOR semblance

1 aspect, exterior, mien, air.

2 seeming.

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR semblance ON THESAURUS.COM

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for semblance

And any semblance of normality that had previously existed seemed to have evaporated.
How WWI Produced the Holocaust|J.P. O’Malley|November 21, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Still, amid the uncertainty the residents of Bab al-Salameh do their best to carve a semblance of order into their lives.
Millions of Refugees from Syria’s War Are Clinging to Life In Toxic Conditions|Christopher Looney|April 14, 2014|DAILY BEAST
And it was clear we would not even maintain a semblance of friendship.
My Therapist Dumped Me|Lizzie Crocker|April 4, 2014|DAILY BEAST
It took months, she said, for any semblance of normality to take root.
Two Decades After Genocide, Rwanda’s Women Have Made the Nation Thrive|Nina Strochlic|April 2, 2014|DAILY BEAST

First, the Neesonesque action hero must convey some semblance of hard-earned depth, which helps older viewers identify.
Why Respected Screen Veterans Are Following Liam Neeson’s Footsteps|Andrew Romano|February 28, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Then Rhun began jesting with the maid, who still kept the semblance of her mistress.
The Mabinogion|Lady Charlotte Guest
Nevill's expression was most peculiar as he spoke, and the semblance of a smile hovered about his lips.
In Friendship's Guise|Wm. Murray Graydon
Callous, self-dependent in semblance, think what her sufferings are, empaled by memory and conscience.
Alone|Marion Harland
There was no bitterness between the friends, no semblance of an estrangement of any sort.
Mark Twain, A Biography, 1835-1910, Complete|Albert Bigelow Paine
That House is no representative of the people at all, even in "semblance" or "in form."
The Works of the Right Honourable Edmund Burke, Vol. III. (of 12)|Edmund Burke

British Dictionary definitions for semblance

semblance

/ (ˈsɛmbləns) /

noun

outward appearance, esp without any inner substance or reality

a resemblance or copy

Word Origin for semblance

C13: from Old French, from sembler to seem, from Latin simulāre to imitate, from similis like

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for semblance

semblance

c.1300, "fact of appearing to view," from Old French semblance, from semblant "likeness, appearance," present participle of sembler "to seem, appear," from Latin simulare "to resemble, imitate," from similis "like" (see similar (adj.)). Meaning "person's appearance or demeanor" is attested from c.1400; that of "false, assumed or deceiving appearance" is from 1590s. Meaning "person or thing that resembles another" is attested from 1510s.