surface
Americannoun
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the outer face, outside, or exterior boundary of a thing; outermost or uppermost layer or area.
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any face of a body or thing.
the six surfaces of a cube.
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extent or area of outer face; superficial area.
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the outward appearance, especially as distinguished from the inner nature.
to look below the surface of a matter.
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Geometry. any figure having only two dimensions; part or all of the boundary of a solid.
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land or sea transportation, rather than air, underground, or undersea transportation.
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Aeronautics. an airfoil.
adjective
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of, on, or pertaining to the surface; external.
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apparent rather than real; superficial.
to be guilty of surface judgments.
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of, relating to, or via land or sea.
surface mail.
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Linguistics. belonging to a late stage in the transformational derivation of a sentence; belonging to the surface structure.
verb (used with object)
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to finish the surface of; give a particular kind of surface to; make even or smooth.
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to bring to the surface; cause to appear openly.
Depth charges surfaced the sub. So far we've surfaced no applicants.
verb (used without object)
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to rise to the surface.
The submarine surfaced after four days.
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to work on or at the surface.
noun
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the exterior face of an object or one such face
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( as modifier )
surface gloss
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the area or size of such a face
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( as modifier )
surface measurements
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material resembling such a face, with length and width but without depth
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the superficial appearance as opposed to the real nature
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( as modifier )
a surface resemblance
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geometry
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the complete boundary of a solid figure
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a continuous two-dimensional configuration
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the uppermost level of the land or sea
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( as modifier )
surface transportation
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to emerge; become apparent
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to all appearances
verb
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to rise or cause to rise to or as if to the surface (of water, etc)
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(tr) to treat the surface of, as by polishing, smoothing, etc
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(tr) to furnish with a surface
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(intr) mining
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to work at or near the ground surface
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to wash surface ore deposits
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(intr) to become apparent; emerge
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informal (intr)
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to wake up
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to get up
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Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Conjugated Forms
Present
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have surfacedperfect
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has surfacedperfect 3rd person singular
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surfacingparticiple
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have been surfacingperfect progressive
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am surfacingprogressive 1st person singular
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are surfacingprogressive
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surfacessingular 3rd person
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has been surfacingperfect progressive 3rd person singular
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is surfacingprogressive 3rd person singular
Past
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had surfacedperfect
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had been surfacingperfect progressive
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was surfacingprogressive singular
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surfacedparticiple
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were surfacingprogressive plural
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surfacedsimple
Future
Etymology
Origin of surface
First recorded in 1605–15; from French; equivalent to sur- 1 + face; apparently modeled on Latin superficies superficies
Explanation
The surface is the outside of anything. The earth, a basketball, and even your body have a surface. A surface is the top layer of something. The surface of the moon is rocky, with a lot of craters, while the surface of the earth has a lot of water. Sandpaper has a rough surface; a balloon has a smooth but rubbery surface. When we use the word surface, it usually means there is a lot of stuff underneath. That applies to our use of surface to mean outward mood, as in "You look happy on the surface, but I know you're angry on the inside."
Vocabulary lists containing surface
Space Science (Astronomy) - Introductory
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"Here, There, and Beyond"
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Earth Science - Middle School
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Perhaps best known among Hockney's pool paintings is A Bigger Splash, which depicts the moment just after a diver has disappeared below the surface of a swimming pool.
From BBC • Jun. 13, 2026
These pictures were ideally suited to Los Angeles: High-sheen, colorful, fully embracing joy—there was little not to like about them on the surface.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 12, 2026
Synthetic aperture radar operates by transmitting microwave pulses from a moving satellite or aircraft toward Earth's surface and then combining the returning signals into detailed images.
From Science Daily • Jun. 12, 2026
El Nino is a natural climate occurrence that warms surface temperatures in the central and eastern equatorial Pacific Ocean, bringing worldwide changes in winds and rainfall patterns and erratic weather.
From Barron's • Jun. 11, 2026
The surface seemed to glitch at first, like a channel that was scrambled.
From "The Way to Rio Luna" by Zoraida Cordova
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
