semblance

[sem-bluhns]

noun

1. outward aspect or appearance.

   Synonyms: air, mien, exterior, aspect

2. an assumed or unreal appearance; show.

   Synonyms: seeming

3. the slightest appearance or trace.

4. a likeness, image, or copy.

5. a spectral appearance; apparition.

semblance

/ ˈsɛmbləns /

noun

1. outward appearance, esp without any inner substance or reality

2. a resemblance or copy

Word History and Origins

Origin of semblance¹

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

Word History and Origins

Origin of semblance¹

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

Example Sentences

Any semblance of patience has been washed away.

Read more on Literature

Bunce joked that at least Joshua's fight with Paul still retains at least a semblance of credibility given boxers have plumbed to even further depths at times.

Read more on BBC

While “You Are the Detective” offers a semblance of linearity, another new gamebook—“Can You Solve the Murder?”

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

The city has been attempting to regain a semblance of normalcy in the fallout, with some shops reopening.

Read more on Barron's

Federline supported the arrangement, arguing that it provided "some semblance of normalcy" for their two boys together.

Read more on BBC

Related Words

• pretense 
• veneer