Define the word superficial"Superficial" gcide "The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48"
Superficial \Su`per*fi"cial\, a. [L. superficialis: cf. F.
superficiel. See Superficies.]
1. Of or pertaining to the superficies, or surface; lying on
the surface; shallow; not deep; as, a superficial color; a
superficial covering; superficial measure or contents;
superficial tillage.
[1913 Webster]
2. Reaching or comprehending only what is obvious or
apparent; not deep or profound; shallow; -- said
especially in respect to study, learning, and the like;
as, a superficial scholar; superficial knowledge.
[1913 Webster]
This superficial tale
Is but a preface of her worthy praise. --Shak.
[1913 Webster]
He is a presumptuous and superficial writer.
--Burke.
[1913 Webster]
That superficial judgment, which happens to be right
without deserving to be so. --J. H.
Newman.
[1913 Webster] -- Su`per*fi"cial*ly, adv. --
Su`per*fi"cial*ness, n.
[1913 Webster]
"superficial" wn "WordNet (r) 2.0"
superficial
adj 1: being or affecting or concerned with a surface; not deep or
penetrating emotionally or intellectually;
"superficial similarities"; "a superficial mind"; "his
thinking was superficial and fuzzy"; "superficial
knowledge"; "the superficial report didn't give the
true picture"; "only superficial differences" [ant: profound]
2: relating to a surface; "superficial measurements"; "the
superficial area of the wall"
3: of little substance or significance; "a few superficial
editorial changes"; "only trivial objections" [syn: trivial]
4: involving a surface only; "her beauty is only skin-deep";
"superficial bruising"; "a surface wound" [syn: skin-deep,
surface(a)]
"superficial" moby-thes "Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0"
208 Moby Thesaurus words for "superficial":
3-D, airy, amateur, amateurish, ankle-deep, apparent, appearing,
arid, asinine, barren, birdbrained, birdwitted, blah, blank,
bloodless, catchpenny, characterless, cold, colorless,
conventionalized, cortical, cosmetic, critical, cubic, cursory,
dabbling, dead, depthless, dilettante, dilettantish, dimensional,
dismal, draggy, drearisome, dreary, dry, dryasdust, dull, dusty,
effete, elephantine, empty, epidermal, epidermic, etiolated,
exomorphic, expeditious, exterior, external, extrinsic, fade,
fatuous, featherbrained, festinate, feverish, few, flat, flighty,
flimsy, fluffy, flying, foolish, footling, formal, formalist,
formalistic, formulary, fourth-dimensional, fribble, fribbling,
fringe, frivolous, frothy, furious, futile, general, half-assed,
half-baked, half-cocked, hasty, heavy, ho-hum, hollow, hurried,
idle, immature, immediate, impersonal, inane, inconsequential,
inconsiderable, inexcitable, insignificant, insipid, instant,
insubstantial, jejune, knee-deep, last-minute, leaden, legalistic,
lifeless, light, little, low, low-spirited, meager, meaningless,
miniature, negligible, no great shakes, nominal, not deep,
nugacious, nugatory, on the spot, on the surface, open, ostensible,
otiose, out, outer, outermost, outlying, outmost, outside,
outstanding, outward, outward-facing, pale, pallid, passing,
pedantic, pedestrian, perfunctory, peripheral, petty, picayune,
picayunish, plodding, pointless, poky, ponderous, prompt,
proportional, public, quick, roundabout, sciolistic, seeming,
shallow, shallow-headed, shallow-minded, shallow-pated,
shallow-rooted, shallow-witted, shoal, short, silly, sketchy,
skin-deep, slap-bang, slapdash, slender, slight, slow, small,
smattering, snap, solemn, sophomoric, space, space-time, spatial,
spatiotemporal, speedy, spherical, spiritless, stereoscopic,
sterile, stiff, stodgy, stuffy, stylized, surface, swift,
tasteless, tedious, thin, three-dimensional, tiny, trifling, trite,
trivial, two-dimensional, uncritical, unimportant, unlively,
unprofound, urgent, vacuous, vain, vapid, visible, volatile,
volumetric, windy, wooden
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