surface 1 of 3

as in exterior
an outer part or layer the surface of just about everything in the kitchen was covered with soot after we put the grease fire out

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surface

2 of 3

verb

1
as in to emerge
to come to one's attention especially gradually or unexpectedly no information regarding the stolen car has surfaced since the police found it abandoned on a country road

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2
as in to rise
to penetrate the surface (as of water) from below a submarine surfaced on the starboard side of the aircraft carrier

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surface

3 of 3

adjective

as in superficial
lying on or affecting only the outer layer of something a surface stain on the wood that can easily be removed with a mild detergent

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of surface
Noun
The walls are made of coral, and over time, the sea salt inside them rises to the surface and leaves pale marks that catch the light. Sandals Resorts, AFAR Media, 2 June 2025 If Resilience succeeds on June 5, the lander will deploy a small rover called Tenacious and also operate a suite of scientific instruments on the lunar surface. Samantha Mathewson, Space.com, 2 June 2025
Verb
With Venus retrograde in Aries starting on March 1 and affecting your career and outward expression, old insecurities about your worth and ambitions may surface. Meghan Rose, Glamour, 1 June 2025 Without a job posting or a search, Diaz’s name alone surfaced as a replacement. Sun Sentinel Editorial Board, Sun Sentinel, 30 May 2025
Adjective
In it were tablets containing concentrated hand soap as well as multi-surface, glass and bathroom cleaners — and four empty containers. Susan Shain, New York Times, 17 Mar. 2023 The sub was fitted with six 533-millimeter torpedo tubes and carried a mix of both anti-surface and anti-submarine weapons. Kyle Mizokami, Popular Mechanics, 23 Dec. 2022 See All Example Sentences for surface
Recent Examples of Synonyms for surface
Noun
  • Vessels inside the tomb also featured textiles adhered to their exterior, which indicate that textiles were an important industry in Gordion, Rose said in a news release.
    Greta Cross, USA Today, 13 June 2025
  • Compared to the existing two terminals, the low-lying exterior profile of T3 has some similarities.
    Kevin Rozario, Forbes.com, 13 June 2025
Verb
  • After stints at the University of Georgia and Jacksonville State, Camron McDowell has emerged as a tantalizing future bet.
    Gary Bedore, Kansas City Star, 14 June 2025
  • Issy Knowles, a former winner of the emerging writer scheme The Brit List, is preparing to get into the mind of an OnlyFans star for her next project.
    Jake Kanter, Deadline, 13 June 2025
Verb
  • Interestingly, this percentage rises to 64% when examining data from the last 3 years instead of 5.
    Trefis Team, Forbes.com, 4 June 2025
  • Needham downgrades Apple to hold from buy Needham downgraded the stock due to rising competition and valuation.
    Michael Bloom, CNBC, 4 June 2025
Adjective
  • Stick’s good feeling is not just superficial, either.
    Kathryn VanArendonk, Vulture, 5 June 2025
  • People expect brands to understand them—not in a superficial, segmented way, but in a way that mirrors the nuanced complexity of their lives.
    Vibhor Kapoor, Forbes.com, 4 June 2025
Noun
  • Trump’s team is working furiously to keep the bill going on other fronts, too: seeking to discredit Congress’s nonpartisan scorekeeper while savaging Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., for resisting the bill and its debt ceiling increase.
    Burgess Everett, semafor.com, 6 June 2025
  • Trump has repeatedly attacked Harvard on multiple fronts—accusing the school of harboring antisemitism, enrolling too many foreign students, accepting excessive foreign funding and being hostile to conservatives.
    Martha McHardy, MSNBC Newsweek, 6 June 2025
Verb
  • Often, this insight arose in conversation with other women, in consciousness-raising groups.
    Dayna Tortorici, New Yorker, 9 June 2025
  • Some problems arise in the fine print and Fox is transformed into a flesh-eating demon.
    Matt Donnelly, Variety, 9 June 2025
Adjective
  • The case is drawing parallels to the 2020 death of Vanessa Guillen, the 20-year-old private first class who was last seen in the parking lot of her barracks, and was later found in a shallow grave near Fort Cavazos in Texas.
    Rosa Flores, CNN Money, 13 June 2025
  • Whisk together buttermilk and egg in another shallow bowl.
    Jasmine Smith, Southern Living, 12 June 2025
Verb
  • Slezak is set to appear in Craig Brewer's musical film Song Sung Blue at the end of this year.
    Wesley Stenzel, EW.com, 13 June 2025
  • The best actors to take on a Wes Anderson role, many of whom have appeared again and again throughout the course of the filmmaker’s 12 features, seem comfortable stretching out in this narrow window of temperament.
    Joe Reid, Vulture, 12 June 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Surface.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/surface. Accessed 17 Jun. 2025.

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