Surface Meaning
/ˈsɜːfɪs/Definition, CEFR level A2, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
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Definition
nounThe overside or upside of a flat object such as a table, or of a liquid.
nounThe outside hull of a tangible object.
Sentence Examples
One third of the earth's surface is desert.
The sea covers nearly three-fourths of the earth's surface.
Smooth surface to play the game on.
Synonyms & Antonyms
Antonyms:
CEFR Practice Quiz
After staying underwater for an hour, the diver was forced to ____ for fresh air.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The ____ of the calm lake looked like a polished mirror reflecting the beautiful trees and the blue sky today.
Word Origin & History
Etymology tree Middle French surfacebor. English surface Borrowed from Middle French surface. By surface analysis, sur- + face. Doublet of superficies.
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"A very neat old woman, still in her good outdoor coat and best beehive hat, was sitting at a polished mahogany table on whose surface there were several scored scratches so deep that a triangular piece of the veneer had come cleanly away,[…]."
— 1963, Margery Allingham, “Foreword”, in The China Governess: A Mystery, London: Chatto & Windus, →OCLC:
"Use the lowest light level required. Be mindful of surface conditions, as some surfaces may reflect more light into the night sky than was intended."
— 2020 June 1, DarkSky International, Five Principles for Responsible Outdoor Lighting:
"Of all the transitions brought about on the Earth’s surface by temperature change, the melting of ice into water is the starkest. It is binary. And for the land beneath, the air above and the life around, it changes everything."
— 2013 May 11, “The climate of Tibet: Pole-land”, in The Economist, volume 407, number 8835, page 80:
"[The researchers] noticed many of their pieces of [plastic marine] debris sported surface pits around two microns across."
— 2013 July 20, “Welcome to the plastisphere”, in The Economist, volume 408, number 8845:
"Such characters as have nothing but external accompliſhments to recommend them, may indeed be greatly admired and approved by vain and weak underſtandings, which penetrate no deeper than the ſurface; but they are deſpiſed by all the truly ſenſible, and pitied by all the truly good."
— 1782, Vicesimus Knox, “On knowing the world at an early age”, in Liberal education: […], 4th edition, London: Charles Dilly […], pages 393–394:
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CEFR Practice Quiz
After staying underwater for an hour, the diver was forced to ____ for fresh air.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The ____ of the calm lake looked like a polished mirror reflecting the beautiful trees and the blue sky today.