SUPERFICIAL

Pronunciation (US):

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IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does superficial mean? 

• SUPERFICIAL (adjective)
  The adjective SUPERFICIAL has 5 senses:

1. concerned with or comprehending only what is apparent or obvious; not deep or penetrating emotionally or intellectually

2. of, affecting, or being on or near the surface

3. of little substance or significance

4. occurring on or near the surface of the skin

5. hasty and without attention to detail; not thorough

  Familiarity information: SUPERFICIAL used as an adjective is common.

 Dictionary entry details 

• SUPERFICIAL (adjective)

Sense 1

Meaning:

Concerned with or comprehending only what is apparent or obvious; not deep or penetrating emotionally or intellectually

Context example:

only superficial differences

Similar:

apparent; ostensible; seeming (appearing as such but not necessarily so)

dilettante; dilettanteish; dilettantish; sciolistic (showing frivolous or superficial interest; amateurish)

facile; neat; slick (superficially impressive, but lacking depth and attention to the true complexities of a subject)

glib (marked by lack of intellectual depth)

looking; sounding (appearing to be as specified; usually used as combining forms)

shallow (lacking depth of intellect or knowledge; concerned only with what is obvious)

skin-deep (penetrating no deeper than the skin:)

Also:

careless (marked by lack of attention or consideration or forethought or thoroughness; not careful)

outward (relating to physical reality rather than with thoughts or the mind)

frivolous (not serious in content or attitude or behavior)

Antonym:

profound (showing intellectual penetration or emotional depth)

Derivation:

superficiality (lack of depth of knowledge or thought or feeling)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Of, affecting, or being on or near the surface

Classified under:

Relational adjectives (pertainyms)

Context example:

a superficial wound

Pertainym:

surface (the extended two-dimensional outer boundary of a three-dimensional object)

Derivation:

superficiality (shallowness in terms of affecting only surface layers of something)

superficies (outer surface of an area or a body)

superficies (the purely external aspect of a thing; superficial appearance)

Sense 3

Meaning:

Of little substance or significance

Synonyms:

superficial; trivial

Context example:

only trivial objections

Similar:

insignificant; unimportant (devoid of importance, meaning, or force)

Sense 4

Meaning:

Occurring on or near the surface of the skin

Context example:

superficial facial injuries

Similar:

shallow (lacking physical depth; having little spatial extension downward or inward from an outer surface or backward or outward from a center)

Sense 5

Meaning:

Hasty and without attention to detail; not thorough

Synonyms:

casual; cursory; passing; perfunctory; superficial

Context example:

In his paper, he showed a very superficial understanding of psychoanalytic theory

Similar:

careless (marked by lack of attention or consideration or forethought or thoroughness; not careful)

 Context examples 

The largest and most superficial muscle on the lateral side of the anterior abdomen which compresses the abdomen and pulls the chest downward.

(External Oblique Muscle, NCI Thesaurus)

Other signs and symptoms include arthritis, deep vein thrombosis and superficial thrombophlebitis.

(Behcet syndrome, NCI Thesaurus)

A form of biological therapy for superficial (not invasive) bladder cancer.

(BCG solution, NCI Dictionary)

Some of the superficial melanocytes show atypia.

(Atypical Melanocytic Nevus of the Genital Type, NCI Thesaurus)

In addition, this gel may also reduce vascular densities in the superficial connective tissues.

(Freeze-dried Black Raspberry Bioadhesive Gel, NCI Thesaurus)

A superficial fibromatosis arising from the soft tissue of the palm.

(Palmar Fibromatosis, NCI Thesaurus)

It has a superficial location in the cerebral hemispheres and involvement of the meninges.

(Pleomorphic Xanthoastrocytoma, NCI Thesaurus/WHO)

Persistent inflammation of the superficial portion of the gastric mucosa.

(Persistent Superficial Gastritis, NCI Thesaurus)

A coded value specifying the appearance of a superficial lesion.

(Performed Lesion Description Appearance Type Code, NCI Thesaurus)

A sample of secretions and superficial cells of the body of uterus, cervix, and ovaries; examined with a microscope to detect any abnormal cells.

(Papanicolaou Smear Procedure, NCI Thesaurus)