on the face of it
idiom
: from only what is known at first
On the face of it, her proposal seems ridiculous—maybe it will sound better when we learn more about it.
Examples of on the face of it in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
At least on the face of it, there’s reason to wonder at the conclusions Kaegi’s office has drawn in the wake of what all agree has been a painful post-pandemic hit to commercial values, particularly office.
—
The Editorial Board, Chicago Tribune, 31 Jan. 2025
Much of the report focuses on full-year comparisons between 2022 and 2023 and, on the face of it, investment is still flowing in, despite a difficult economic backdrop.
—Trevor Clawson, Forbes, 29 Nov. 2024
The Chelsea players’ shirts are hanging up with the names and numbers showing but those jerseys are not allowed to be in shot even if turned around to hide that information, which makes little sense on the face of it.
—Stuart James, The Athletic, 21 Aug. 2024
This is a group of eight different search terms that appear below the initial results on the search page, and, on the face of it, appear to be linked to the search term just used.
—David Gilbert, WIRED, 16 July 2024
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The Editorial Board, Chicago Tribune, 31 Jan. 2025
Much of the report focuses on full-year comparisons between 2022 and 2023 and, on the face of it, investment is still flowing in, despite a difficult economic backdrop.
—Trevor Clawson, Forbes, 29 Nov. 2024
The Chelsea players’ shirts are hanging up with the names and numbers showing but those jerseys are not allowed to be in shot even if turned around to hide that information, which makes little sense on the face of it.
—Stuart James, The Athletic, 21 Aug. 2024
This is a group of eight different search terms that appear below the initial results on the search page, and, on the face of it, appear to be linked to the search term just used.
—David Gilbert, WIRED, 16 July 2024
See all Example Sentences for on the face of it
Dictionary Entries Near on the face of it
Cite this Entry
“On the face of it.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/on%20the%20face%20of%20it. Accessed 22 Feb. 2025.
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