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superficiality

superficiality

4 7.8
Lack of deep thought or careful attention
  • noun
  • /ˌsuːpərfɪˈʃiːəlɪti/
translation icon : superficialidad
  • She realized that her friendships were based on superficiality, lacking any real emotional connection.
  • understand the superficiality
  • superficiality and lack

They want epic lives, but they're stuck in the group of the cult of superficiality.

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Examples

  • But these norms nevertheless have a certain superficiality about them.

    Academic text (2018)
  • The movie was criticized for its superficiality, focusing only on special effects rather than a meaningful story.

  • I just started to hate the superficiality of the whole scene.

  • I hope you all encourage her," I said, and heard the superficiality of my own words.

    Fiction book (1990)
  • But there is a general sense of a lack of meaning to life, of superficiality.

    Academic text (2002)
  • But also, when you look through the world through that lens, you understand the superficiality of many of these other things.

  • We came to agree that integration must not be used as a cover for superficiality.

    Academic text (1993)
  • The larger problem here is the superficiality of the short judgments, as many here have described.

    Blog text (5)
  • The fashionable society of the present is associated with superficiality, whereas the past is full of spiritual and intellectual value.

    Academic text (2014)
  • Yet he is acutely aware of the essential superficiality of this representation and its ultimate fictional or illusory nature.

    Academic text (2003)

Synonyms

shallowness
vssuperficiality
3 5.4

A person or idea that shows little deep thought and weak feeling

is broader, stressing concern with surface aspects rather than only mental depth
meretriciousness
vssuperficiality
  • Formal
9.9

Something that looks bright and attractive but has no real value

focuses on being surface oriented rather than merely flashy outward appearance

Antonyms

117 3.6

A strong, intense quality in sound, color or feeling

53 2.7

A calm and honest way of speaking or acting that shows you mean what you say

profundity
  • Formal
3 8.4

A serious, clear way of thinking that shows strong understanding of important ideas

How Superficial

shallowness
3 5.4
superficiality
4 7.8
thoroughness
8 5.3
depth
146 4.4

Surface Forms

Morphology

superficiality = superficial (transparent) = superficial + ity

The noun is a regular nominalization of the adjective 'superficial' with '-ity', yielding 'the quality of being superficial', which is directly interpretable by learners.

Etymology

The word superficiality comes from Latin parts super- meaning 'over' and facies meaning 'face', and you can see the same idea in English words like surface and face. That's why superficiality means being shallow or only about what is on the surface, not about deeper parts.