real

¹

[ ree-uhl, reel ]

adjective

1. true; not merely ostensible, nominal, or apparent:

   the real reason for an act.

2. existing or occurring as fact; actual rather than imaginary, ideal, or fictitious:

   a story taken from real life.

3. being an actual thing; having objective existence; not imaginary:

   The events you will see in the film are real and not just made up.

4. being actually such; not merely so-called:

   a real victory.

5. genuine; not counterfeit, artificial, or imitation; authentic:

   a real antique;

   a real diamond;

   real silk.

6. unfeigned or sincere: a real friend.

   real sympathy;

   a real friend.

7. Informal. absolute; complete; utter:

   She's a real brain.

8. Philosophy.
   1. existent or pertaining to the existent as opposed to the nonexistent.
   2. actual as opposed to possible or potential.
   3. independent of experience as opposed to phenomenal or apparent.
9. (of money, income, or the like) measured in purchasing power rather than in nominal value:

   Inflation has driven income down in real terms, though nominal income appears to be higher.

10. Optics. (of an image) formed by the actual convergence of rays, as the image produced in a camera ( virtual ).
11. Mathematics.
    1. of, relating to, or having the value of a real number.
    2. using real numbers:

       real analysis; real vector space.

adverb

1. Informal. very or extremely:

   You did a real nice job painting the house.

noun

1. real number.
2. the real,
   1. something that actually exists, as a particular quantity.
   2. reality in general.

real

²

[ rey-ahl; Spanish re-ahl ]

noun

, plural re·als [rey-, ahlz], Spanish re·a·les [r, e-, ah, -les].

1. a former silver coin of Spain and Spanish America, the eighth part of a peso.

real

³

[ rey-ahl; Portuguese re-ahl ]

noun

1. singular of reis.

real

¹

/ ˈrɪəl /

adjective

1. existing or occurring in the physical world; not imaginary, fictitious, or theoretical; actual
2. prenominal true; actual; not false

   the real reason

3. prenominal deserving the name; rightly so called

   a real friend

   a real woman

4. not artificial or simulated; genuine

   real fur

   real sympathy

5. (of food, etc) traditionally made and having a distinct flavour

   real cheese

   real ale

6. philosophy existent or relating to actual existence (as opposed to nonexistent, potential, contingent, or apparent)
7. prenominal economics (of prices, incomes, wages, etc) considered in terms of purchasing power rather than nominal currency value
8. prenominal denoting or relating to immovable property such as land and tenements Compare personal

   real property

9. physics Compare image
10. maths involving or containing real numbers alone; having no imaginary part
11. music
    1. (of the answer in a fugue) preserving the intervals as they appear in the subject
    2. denoting a fugue as having such an answer Compare tonal
12. informal.
    (intensifier)

    a real fool

    a real genius

13. the real thing
    the genuine article, not an inferior or mistaken substitute

noun

1. short for real number
2. the real
   that which exists in fact; reality
3. for real slang.
   not as a test or trial; in earnest

real

²

/ reɪˈɑːl; reˈal /

noun

1. a former small Spanish or Spanish-American silver coin

real

³

/ reˈal /

noun

1. the standard monetary unit of Brazil, divided into 100 centavos
2. a former coin of Portugal

Usage Note

The intensifying adverb real, meaning “very,” is informal and limited to speech or to written representations of speech: He drives a real beat-up old car. The adjective real meaning “true, actual, genuine, etc.,” is standard in all types of speech and writing: Their real reasons for objecting became clear in the discussion. The informal adjective sense “absolute, complete” is also limited to speech or representations of speech: These interruptions are a real bother.

Derived Forms

• ˈrealness, noun

Other Words From

• real·ness noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of real¹

First recorded in 1400–50; Middle English real(le) “actual, having physical existence); (law) pertaining to goods or property,” from Old French reel, real and Medieval Latin reālis “(law) pertaining to things rather than persons,” from Late Latin reālis “actual, real,” equivalent to Latin re-, variant stem of rēs “thing, matter, affair” + -ālis -al ¹

Origin of real²

First recorded in 1550–60; from Spanish: literally, “royal” (the coins being minted for the king), from Latin rēgālis regal ¹

Word History and Origins

Origin of real¹

C15: from Old French réel , from Late Latin reālis , from Latin rēs thing

Origin of real²

C17: from Spanish, literally: royal, from Latin rēgālis ; see regal ¹

Origin of real³

ultimately from Latin rēgālis regal ¹

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. for real, Informal.
   1. in reality; actually:

      You mean she dyed her hair green for real?

   2. true to fact; actual:

      The company's plans to relocate are for real.

   3. genuine; sincere:

      I don't believe his friendly attitude is for real.

More idioms and phrases containing real

In addition to the idiom beginning with real , also see for real ; get real .

Synonym Study

Real, actual, true in general use describe objects, persons, experiences, etc., that are what they are said or purport to be. That which is described as real is genuine as opposed to counterfeit, false, or merely supposed: a real emerald; real leather binding; My real ambition is to be a dentist. Actual usually stresses contrast with another state of affairs that has been proposed or suggested: The actual cost is much less; to conceal one's actual motive. True implies a perfect correspondence with actuality and is in direct contrast to that which is false or inaccurate: a true account of the events; not bravado but true courage. authentic.

Example Sentences

We’re looking for speakers who can present real-life case studies and actionable ideas that search marketers can put to use immediately to overcome the challenges of this new reality.

From Search Engine Land

The real uncertainty is around international students and postgraduate students.

From Ozy

As stated on the official website, TikTok is made for real people to create real videos.

From Search Engine Watch

“I’m really excited about this change, and I think it has the potential to be a real game-changer for many students,” Whitehurst-Payne said.

From Voice of San Diego

That whole you-complete-me thing, it’s a Hollywood creation that’s not real.

From Ozy

But along with the cartoon funk is an all-too-real story of police brutality embodied by a horde of evil Pigs.

From The Daily Beast

We haven't had any real fan reaction yet, but our collective fingers are crossed.

From The Daily Beast

They say it's frightening how the real CIA is perceived to be as clueless as Archer Co.

From The Daily Beast

But if you listen to our leaders, they weren't the real targets here.

From The Daily Beast

“This is a federal mandate that is causing some real problems for schools across the country,” Kline told a CBS affiliate in July.

From The Daily Beast

It was not until later days that Malcolm knew the real nature of the scene through which he rode.

From Project Gutenberg

It was in the college stage that most of us made out our religion and made it real for ourselves.

From Project Gutenberg

The real experience has a magnetism of its own and will win above mere technicality whenever it has the opportunity.

From Project Gutenberg

If we are to have a real education along lines of expression we must begin with the "content," or cause, of expression.

From Project Gutenberg

Another time she might have smiled at the thought as fanciful: it seemed awfully real now.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• absolute
• actual
• authentic
• certain
• evident
• for real
• honest
• legitimate
• original
• palpable
• physical
• positive
• sincere
• solid
• substantial
• substantive
• true
• undeniable