on the surface

Idioms and Phrases

Superficially, to all outward appearances, as in On the surface he appeared brave and patriotic, but his troops knew better . [Early 1700s]

Example Sentences

CAR-T cells are T-cells that have been modified in the lab to home in on proteins on the surface of an individual's cancer cells.

From Science Daily

“Bondi looks more ‘normal’ on the surface, and she has the kind of experience you look for for a position like this,” former U.S.

From Salon

“If you are a fish that lives in the deep and you got stuck on the surface, you’re kind of hosed,” she said.

From Los Angeles Times

"A laser beam focuses on the tip of a force microscope and thus causes a temperature gradient on the surface of the sample that is spatially limited to the nanoscale," says Professor Georg Woltersdorf from the Institute of Physics at MLU.

From Science Daily

The blockage of blood flow is primarily driven by a family of about 60 virulent proteins, called PfEMP1, present on the surface of infected red blood cells.

From Science Daily

Related Words

• evidently
• officially
• seemingly
• supposedly