literalism
Americannoun
-
adherence to the exact letter or the literal sense, as in translation or interpretation.
to interpret the law with uncompromising literalism.
-
a peculiarity of expression resulting from this.
The work is studded with these obtuse literalisms.
-
exact representation or portrayal, without idealization, as in art or literature.
a literalism more appropriate to journalism than to the novel.
noun
-
the disposition to take words and statements in their literal sense
-
literal or realistic portrayal in art or literature
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of literalism
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.
Meanwhile, Wilde’s direction manages to be simultaneously overheated and pedestrian, resorting to blunt-force literalism in moments that call for Hitchcockian finesse.
From Washington Post • Sep. 20, 2022
Maimonides claimed that biblical literalism was the main reason people could not get closer to God.
From Textbooks • Jun. 15, 2022
It's been quoted to argue against Biblical literalism and science denial.
From Salon • Jan. 28, 2022
That’s one among many reasons this new seven-part series is so special and refreshing: It’s a wild departure from the talking-heads literalism you’ll find elsewhere.
From New York Times • Aug. 19, 2021
But you wouldn't know all this if you went by the sound of his name—which I did, an immigrant's failing, literalism.
From "How the García Girls Lost Their Accents" by Julia Alvarez
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.
