literal
adjective
in accordance with, involving, or being the primary or strict meaning of the word or words; not figurative or metaphorical.
literalness
-
a word derived from
literal.
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.
Onscreen, “On Chesil Beach” loses some intensity at the end, as the supple suggestiveness of Mr. McEwan’s prose is replaced by the stagy literalness of film.
From New York Times ● May 16, 2018
Lewandowski’s similar point about Trump’s literalness offered this implication.
From Slate ● Dec. 5, 2016
The director didn’t seem to trust his audience to take those seminal Christian events seriously unless he presented them with dogged literalness.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 26, 2016
In the other, far more abstracted, such lyricism and literalness has been excised, physically obliterated, along with part of the figure, with strong vertical abstract strokes.
From Washington Post ● Mar. 12, 2015
Like Charles, he had stopped believing in the literalness of the Bible.
From "Charles and Emma: The Darwins' Leap of Faith" by Deborah Heiligman
