[
US
/ˌsupɝˈfɪʃəɫ/
]
[ UK /sˈuːpəfˈɪʃəl/ ]
[ UK /sˈuːpəfˈɪʃəl/ ]
ADJECTIVE
-
of little substance or significance
a few superficial editorial changes
only trivial objections -
hasty and without attention to detail; not thorough
a passing glance
perfunctory courtesy
a casual (or cursory) inspection failed to reveal the house's structural flaws
In his paper, he showed a very superficial understanding of psychoanalytic theory -
of, affecting, or being on or near the surface
superficial measurements
the superficial area of the wall
a superficial wound -
occurring on or near the surface of the skin
superficial facial injuries
superficial burns -
concerned with or comprehending only what is apparent or obvious; not deep or penetrating emotionally or intellectually
superficial similarities
only superficial differences
a superficial mind
superficial knowledge
his thinking was superficial and fuzzy
the superficial report didn't give the true picture
How To Use superficial In A Sentence
- They will not see through the superficial machinations of modern baaskap whose heart is filled with envy at seeing the dream becoming true, of a people united in a social contract, working together black and white, to determine a better future for themselves. SPEECH BY NKOSINATHI NHLEKO, CHIEF WHIP OF THE MAJORITY PARTY ON THE STATE OF THE NATION ADDRESS
- Despite their superficial similarity, submersion of minorities in English-only programs in the USA and Canadian immersion programs are different and they lead to different results.
- Superficially, the rationale of the style would seem to be its conjuncture of sensitivity and showmanship.
- The labellum indument resembles, although superficially, that of the hairy areas of an insect tegument.
- The third muscle to consider is a superficial muscle that lies along the anterior side of the tibiotarsus.
- The fact is that any Democrat's heroic war record functions mostly as superficial innoculation against charges of sissiness during campaigns, and it's the reason you see so many more Republican chickenhawks than anti-war Dems in public office these days. Hullabaloo
- Too frequently the stories seem to settle for, at worst, an indulgence in superficial whimsy, at best, a cultivation of the bizarre in situation and event that, at least as I read them, can't bear the weight they're asked to bear when left to provide the primary source of dramatic interest. Genre Fiction
- _Ophthalmia lymphatica_ is a kind of anasarca of the tunica adnata; in this the vessels over the sclerotica, or white part of the eye, rise considerably above the cornea, which they surround, are less red than in the ophthalmia superficialis, and appear to be swelled by an accumulation of lymph rather than of blood; it is probably owing to the temporary obstruction of a branch of the lymphatic system. Zoonomia, Vol. II Or, the Laws of Organic Life
- People were half-conscious that this system was a superficial and artificial means of control.
- The characters themselves are little more than superficial sketches that become increasingly indistinguishable as the movie proceeds.