literal
Americanadjective
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in accordance with, involving, or being the primary or strict meaning of the word or words; not figurative or metaphorical.
the literal meaning of a word.
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following the words of the original very closely and exactly.
a literal translation of Goethe.
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true to fact; not exaggerated; actual or factual.
a literal description of conditions.
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being actually such, without exaggeration or inaccuracy.
the literal extermination of a city.
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(of persons) tending to construe words in the strict sense or in an unimaginative way; matter-of-fact; prosaic.
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of or relating to the letters of the alphabet.
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of the nature of letters.
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expressed by letters.
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affecting a letter or letters.
a literal error.
noun
adjective
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in exact accordance with or limited to the primary or explicit meaning of a word or text
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word for word
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dull, factual, or prosaic
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consisting of, concerning, or indicated by letters
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true; actual
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maths containing or using coefficients and constants represented by letters: ax² + b is a literal expression Compare numerical
noun
Other Word Forms
- literalness noun
- nonliteral adjective
- nonliterally adverb
- nonliteralness noun
- overliteral adjective
- unliteral adjective
- unliterally adverb
Etymology
Origin of literal
1350–1400; Middle English < Late Latin litterālis “of letters.” See letter 1, -al 1
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.
Like many autistic people, Haight’s mind interprets language in its most literal sense.
From Los Angeles Times
“It is late for the literal, no?” he protests when the narrator presses him on biographical specifics.
The second season of “Paradise” ended with a literal bang.
From Los Angeles Times
Meanwhile, in Germany, Martin Luther had questioned the Catholic doctrine of transubstantiation, the literal transformation of bread and wine into the body and blood of Christ.
“I wanted to paint a hazy portrait of the Midwest but not in such a literal way,” she said.
From Los Angeles Times
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.
