Meanings
- idiomaticSeemingly; to all appearances; as far as can be seen or determined without deeper investigation or analysis.
On the face of it, his case seemed hopeless. But appearances can be deceptive.
Synonyms: at first glance, apparently, prima facie
Synonyms & antonyms
prepositional phraseSeemingly; to all appearances; as far as can be seen or determined without deeper investigation or analysis.
More synonyms by meaning
adverbfrom appearances alone
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Translations
Arabic عَلَى مَا يَبْدُو, لِأَوَّلِ وَهْلَةٍ
- عَلَى مَا يَبْدُو (ʕalā mā yabdū)as far as can be seen or determined
- لِأَوَّلِ وَهْلَةٍ (liʔawwali wahlatin)as far as can be seen or determined
Chinese Mandarin 從表面上看 /从表面上看
- 從表面上看 /从表面上看 (cóng biǎomiàn shàng kàn)as far as can be seen or determined
Finnish päällisin puolin, ensi katsomalta
- päällisin puolinas far as can be seen or determined
- ensi katsomaltaas far as can be seen or determined
- ulkonaisestias far as can be seen or determined
- pintapuolisestias far as can be seen or determined
French en apparence, a priori
- en apparenceas far as can be seen or determined
- a priorias far as can be seen or determined
Hebrew לִכְאוֹרָה
- לִכְאוֹרָה (lichora)as far as can be seen or determined
Hungarian ránézésre
- ránézésreas far as can be seen or determined
Polish na pierwszy rzut oka
- na pierwszy rzut okaas far as can be seen or determined
Russian по-ви́димому, на пе́рвый взгляд
- по-ви́димому (po-vídimomu)as far as can be seen or determined
- на пе́рвый взгляд (na pérvyj vzgljad)as far as can be seen or determined
Cite this entry
on the face of it. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/on%20the%20face%20of%20it
“on the face of it.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/on%20the%20face%20of%20it. Accessed November 5, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “on the face of it,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/on%20the%20face%20of%20it.
Source: on the face of it on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.