on the face of it

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Prepositional phrase

1. (idiomatic) Seemingly; to all appearances; as far as can be seen or determined.

   On the face of it, his case seemed hopeless. But appearances can be deceptive.

Synonyms

• at first glance, apparently, prima facie; see also Thesaurus:ostensibly

Translations

• French: en apparence, a priori
• Russian: по-ви́димому

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