noun
semblance
SEM-bluhns/ˈsembləns/
An appearance or slight sign of something, especially when the reality is different.
The tidy desktop creates a semblance of order despite the disorder underneath.
Etymology
Old French semblance meant “likeness” or “appearance.” The shift toward “mere appearance” explains how the word can suggest an outward show or only a slight trace of a quality.
In context
just through happenstance and serendipity you know blundering into people and then trying to weave them into a semblance of narrative
More examples
- The repairs restore a semblance of order to the room.
- His explanation bears only a faint semblance to the truth.
- They struggle to preserve some semblance of normal life.
Forms
semblance · semblances
Similar words
- appearance
- Does not necessarily imply a gap between looks and reality.
- likeness
- Likeness is resemblance in form or character; semblance can emphasize an appearance unsupported by reality.