What is the meaning of ostensible?

adjective

  • Appearing as such but not necessarily so.
    • usage: "for all his apparent wealth he had no money to pay the rent"; "the committee investigated some apparent discrepancies"; "the ostensible truth of their theories"; "his seeming honesty"
  • Represented or appearing as such; pretended.
    • usage: "His ostensible purpose was charity, his real goal popularity"
WordNet 3.0 © 2006 by Princeton University
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APAWordNet. (2010). ostensible. Retrieved September 20, 2026, from http://smartdefine.org/ostensible/definitions/1180007
ChicagoWordNet. 2010. "ostensible" http://smartdefine.org/ostensible/definitions/1180007 (accessed September 20, 2026).
HarvardWordNet 2010, ostensible, Smart Define, viewed 20 September, 2026, <http://smartdefine.org/ostensible/definitions/1180007>.
MLAWordNet. "ostensible" 23 October 2010. Web. 20 September 2026. <http://smartdefine.org/ostensible/definitions/1180007>
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