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.
following the words of the original very closely and exactly: a literal translation of Goethe.
true to fact; not exaggerated; actual or factual: a literal description of conditions.
being actually such, without exaggeration or inaccuracy: the literal extermination of a city.
(of persons) tending to construe words in the strict sense or in an unimaginative way; matter-of-fact; prosaic.
of or relating to the letters of the alphabet.
of the nature of letters.
expressed by letters.
affecting a letter or letters: a literal error.
noun
a typographical error, especially involving a single letter.
Origin of literal
1350–1400;Middle English < Late Latinlitterālis “of letters.” See letter1, -al1
Related formslit·er·al·ness, nounnon·lit·er·al, adjectivenon·lit·er·al·ly, adverbnon·lit·er·al·ness, nouno·ver·lit·er·al, adjectiveun·lit·er·al, adjectiveun·lit·er·al·ly, adverbCan be confusedliterallittoral
late 14c., "taking words in their natural meaning" (originally in reference to Scripture and opposed to mystical or allegorical), from Old French literal and directly from Late Latin literalis/litteralis "of or belonging to letters or writing," from Latin litera/littera "letter, alphabetic sign; literature, books" (see letter (n.1)). Meaning "of or pertaining to alphabetic letters" is from late 15c. Sense of "verbally exact" is attested from 1590s, as is application to the primary sense of a word or passage. Literal-minded is attested from 1791.
