superficial

[soo-per-fish-uhl] / ˌsu pərˈfɪʃ əl /

ADJECTIVE

without depth, detail

Synonyms

STRONGEST

cursory frivolous one-dimensional perfunctory silly sketchy slight trivial

WEAK

apparent casual cosmetic depthless desultory empty evident exterior external flash flimsy general glib half-baked hasty hurried ignorant inattentive lightweight nodding on the surface ostensible outward partial passing peripheral quick-fix seeming shallow shoal skin-deep slapdash smattery summary surface tip of the iceberg uncritical warped

Antonyms

STRONGEST

complete important mature sensible serious significant thoughtful wise

WEAK

analytical careful deep detailed genuine thorough

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

But in retrospect, my relationship with that ring was superficial.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 29, 2026

“It’s a terrible idea to move swiftly and not have the really complicated and challenging process that is required to actually work towards more than a superficial pretense of revisionist history,” Gudis said.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 21, 2026

The panel said the statement did not make any reference to the victims of his offences and "any remorse shown was superficial in its nature".

From BBC • Feb. 20, 2026

X on Friday denounced what it called the EU's "incomplete and superficial investigation".

From Barron's • Feb. 20, 2026

Perhaps the recipients will make nothing of it, or think it is a recording of a pulsar, which in some superficial sense it resembles.

From "Cosmos" by Carl Sagan

superficial

Example Sentences

Related Words