Could be
Ostensibly and could be are semantically related. In some cases you can use "Ostensibly" instead an adverb phrase "Could be".
Ostensibly
Ostensibly adverb - From appearances alone.
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Synonyms for Ostensibly
Could be and ostensibly are semantically related. Sometimes you can use "Could be" instead an adverb "Ostensibly".
Nearby Word: ostensible
Mutual synonyms
Related pairs
- apparently and could be
- apparently and ostensibly
- supposedly and could be
- supposedly and ostensibly
- presumably and could be
- presumably and ostensibly
- probably and could be
- probably and ostensibly
- possibly and could be
- possibly and ostensibly
- evidently and could be
- evidently and ostensibly
- professedly and could be
- professedly and ostensibly
Both terms in one sentence
- It turns out one of the nuns recently gave birth and he's ostensibly the only one who could be the father.
Source: Hot for Preacher - Ivanova refuses, ostensibly because she is offended that her superiors would even suggest her loyalty could be in question, but in actuality it is because she is a rogue telepath.
Source: The Inquisitor General -
It counts as this trope because the real purpose of the conversation was to get a mental scan of Talia, ostensibly there as a telepathic mediator, so that her "real self" could be preserved.
Source: Ice-Cream Koan
Cite this Source
Ostensibly and Could be. (2016). Retrieved 2026, July 22, from https://thesaurus.plus/related/could_be/ostensibly
Could be & Ostensibly. N.p., 2016. Web. 22 Jul. 2026. <https://thesaurus.plus/related/could_be/ostensibly>.
Ostensibly or Could be. 2016. Accessed July 22, 2026. https://thesaurus.plus/related/could_be/ostensibly.
Google Ngram Viewer shows how "could be" and "ostensibly" have occurred on timeline