seemingly

adverb

seem·​ing·​ly ˈsē-miŋ-lē 

: outwardly or apparently

—used to indicate how something appears or seems

a seemingly simple problem [=a problem that seems simple]

a seemingly endless project [=a project that seems to have no end]

The balance of nature—an ideal state in which every species is in its right place—is seemingly being upended.

—Bryan Walsh

These were years in which seemingly every city authority from Adelaide to Oslo had set its heart on the construction of an unsurpassably iconic building …

—Ellis Woodman

Then, in 1929, taste arbiter Emily Post sanctioned a seemingly irreversible shift in manners: "No rule of etiquette is of less importance than which fork we use."

—Douglas Brenner

Dumbledore had most of the remaining Death Eaters grouped in the middle of the room, seemingly immobilized by invisible ropes.

—J. K. Rowling

Synonyms

• apparently
• evidently
• ostensibly
• ostensively
• presumably
• putatively
• supposedly

Examples of seemingly in a Sentence

a seemingly contented baby who was fast asleep in his crib

Recent Examples on the Web

However, the singer and songwriter seemingly paid tribute to Talbott on Valentine’s Day, sharing a photo of the fighter on his social media page. —Preezy Brown, VIBE.com, 17 Mar. 2025

But instead of limiting it to the dominant Bitcoin, the stockpile also includes seemingly random digital currencies of unproven value. —The Editorial Board, Chicago Tribune, 17 Mar. 2025

This seemingly free and easy infant-feeding technique is anything but. —Olga Khazan, The Atlantic, 17 Mar. 2025

So if the seemingly changing motions of the heavens could be predicted, maybe earthly events could be, too. —James Byrne, The Conversation, 17 Mar. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

circa 1616, in the meaning defined above