literal

American  

[lit-er-uhl] / ˈlɪt ər əl /

adjective

1. 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.

2. following the words of the original very closely and exactly.

   a literal translation of Goethe.

3. true to fact; not exaggerated; actual or factual.

   a literal description of conditions.

   Synonyms:

   reliable, exact, truthful

4. being actually such, without exaggeration or inaccuracy.

   the literal extermination of a city.

5. (of persons) tending to construe words in the strict sense or in an unimaginative way; matter-of-fact; prosaic.

6. of or relating to the letters of the alphabet.

7. of the nature of letters.

8. expressed by letters.

9. affecting a letter or letters.

   a literal error.

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noun

1. a typographical error, especially involving a single letter.

literal British  

/ ˈlɪtərəl, ˌlɪtəˈrælɪtɪ /

adjective

1. in exact accordance with or limited to the primary or explicit meaning of a word or text

2. word for word

3. dull, factual, or prosaic

4. consisting of, concerning, or indicated by letters

5. true; actual

6. maths containing or using coefficients and constants represented by letters: ax² + b is a literal expression Compare numerical

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noun

1. Also called: literal error.  a misprint or misspelling in a text

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

The amended indictment, released on Saturday, only includes the phrase twice and now describes it as a “patronage system” and removed the explicit reference that these officials are literal members of the cartel.

From Salon

If social media were a literal ecosystem, it would be about as healthy as Cleveland’s Cuyahoga River in the 1960s—when it was so polluted it repeatedly caught fire.

From The Wall Street Journal

These children lived in the literal shadow of Florentine artistic genius: The building in which the Innocenti was housed is a particularly brilliant example of Romanesque architecture.

From The Wall Street Journal

Television has long been referred to as the electronic hearth, but the yule log’s ubiquity in the streaming era shifts that notion into oddly literal territory.

From Salon

He is said to control a path to the “Infinite Land,” which turns out to be a literal stairway to heaven.

From The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• accurate
• actual
• authentic
• true
• unvarnished