as in apparent
appearing to be true on the basis of evidence that may or may not be confirmed
the ostensive purpose of his visit was to discuss the terms of his will
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of ostensive
Just like Glaucon, the best this new interlocutor could do is an ostensive definition - provide examples of justice - or possibly present the etymology of the word.
—
Theodore McDarrah, Forbes, 10 Jan. 2023
The ostensive unpopularity of violet versus purple nagged at the back of Tager’s mind for much of his life, eventually setting him on a 20-year journey across 193 museums in 42 countries.
—Stephen MacKnik, Scientific American, 1 Sep. 2021
The United Arab Emirates has taken advantage of the fight and now dominates the south, squeezing out its ostensive ally, Hadi.
—Washington Post, 12 May 2018
Recent Examples of Synonyms for ostensive
Adjective
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Two people suffered life-threatening injuries and a suspect has been arrested in connection with an apparent stabbing in San Francisco on Saturday evening, police said.—
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For many of the previous 120 days, Tara tells Thomas what is happening to her, and convinces him of her situation through her apparent clairvoyance.—
Adjective
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The presumed reasoning behind why the film was ignored is multilayered.—
Adjective
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The study offers rare, direct evidence of this process by tracking cool gas across entire galaxies, something that was not possible before large surveys like MaNGA.—
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Ehrlich noted the short careers for college athletes and wondered whether a union for collective bargaining is even possible.—
Adjective
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These conversations tend to invert the ostensible purpose of celebrity interviews.—
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This series’ chief villain, the tough-talking badass Colonel Miles Quaritch (Stephen Lang), killed at the end of Avatar but resurrected in Na’vi form in the second film (long story), has since become both a visual and spiritual foil for Jake Sully (Sam Worthington), our ostensible hero.—
Adjective
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With a full roster in hand, the group will call employees directly, pretending to be a new hire with innocuous-seeming questions about platforms, cloud access, and other tech infrastructure.—
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In Russia, the seeming end of single-party rule and a brief moment of political competition revived the status of the New Year’s address.—
Adjective
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The proximity to Lincoln Center was an obvious draw for musicians, and renters included an avant-garde composer on the sixth floor, a bassist on the fourth, and an opera teacher on the ground level.—
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After successfully training rookie Jackson West, Angela sets her sights on becoming a detective while trying to ignore her obvious chemistry with defense attorney Wesley Evers (Shawn Ashmore).—
Adjective
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Frederique was listed as probable in Miami’s first injury report this week; UM removed the injury designation on subsequent reports.—
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In mid-November, the company readjusted them downward again, and said its sales in 2026 are likely to be impacted by a probable adverse economic and geopolitical environment, and a negative euro-dollar exchange rate to the tune of around 20 million euros, among other factors.—
Cite this Entry
“Ostensive.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ostensive. Accessed 13 Jan. 2026.
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