on the surface

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on the surface

phrase

apparently, outwardly; superficially On the surface, the film is a globe-trotting gross-out caper in which Nobby, who's from a hellish version of the titular Lincolnshire town ("twinned with Chernobyl"), is reunited with his long-lost brother Sebastian (Mark Strong), who has become a spy for the British secret services.
Similar: at first glance, at first sight, on the face of it

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MLA

"on the surface." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/on%20the%20surface. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

APA

on the surface. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/on%20the%20surface

Chicago

"on the surface." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/on%20the%20surface.

BibTeX

@misc{on_the_surface_2026,
  title = {on the surface},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/on%20the%20surface},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}