reality
Americannoun
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realities
plural
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the state or quality of being real.
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resemblance to what is real.
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a real thing or fact.
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real things, facts, or events taken as a whole; state of affairs.
the reality of the business world; vacationing to escape reality.
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Philosophy.
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something that exists independently of ideas concerning it.
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something that exists independently of all other things and from which all other things derive.
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something that is real.
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something that constitutes a real or actual thing, as distinguished from something that is merely apparent.
adjective
idioms
noun
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the state of things as they are or appear to be, rather than as one might wish them to be
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something that is real
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the state of being real
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philosophy
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that which exists, independent of human awareness
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the totality of facts as they are independent of human awareness of them See also conceptualism Compare appearance
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actually; in fact
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of reality
From the Medieval Latin word reālitās, dating back to 1540–50. See real 1, -ity
Explanation
Reality is the way things actually are, not the way you might want them to be. Many TV shows claim to be reality, but they are really just pretend. The only actual reality is the life that happens every day. The noun reality harkens back to the late Latin realis, and later to the mid-16th Century Medieval Latin reālitās, referring to legal property matters, with the current meaning of "true existence" not coming about until 1647. Philosophers and scientists often debate about the true nature of reality, and a common philosophy is that a person’s reality is whatever he or she thinks it is. Or, as film director Tim Burton once said, "One person's craziness is another person's reality."
Vocabulary lists containing reality
Workshop 1, Part 2
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"Fleeing Katrina"
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Schooled
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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.
See Examples For:
The rhetoric, some economists say, is symptomatic of a country that has lost touch with fiscal reality.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 6, 2026
The extended international break might have been brought in with player welfare in mind, but the reality is that a number of players will return to their clubs with injuries.
From BBC ● Oct. 5, 2026
For six seasons, Jordan served as one of the judges on the reality competition series “Canadian Idol.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 5, 2026
The reality is that this account in question doesn’t exist in the way you or I think of a bank account.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 5, 2026
In reality, the pressure may have been going down for a far more ominous reason: At the top of the containment structure is a heavy steel lid that can be opened for reactor maintenance.
From "Meltdown" by Deirdre Langeland
She attributes some of the gender divide to the fact that the two demographics are often presented with different informational realities, though it is difficult to quantify.
From Salon ● Oct. 2, 2026
The realities and pressures of coaching in the NFL include a 24/7 work mentality.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 1, 2026
"Our expectations remain that the conflict will be with markets for the foreseeable future and the global economy will continue adjusting to the realities of the supply disruptions," said Ian Lyngen at BMO Capital Markets.
From Barron's ● Sep. 29, 2026
Later, in an interview with WSJ Editor in Chief Emma Tucker, he brought into sharp focus the immediate realities of global turmoil, sophisticated drone warfare and China’s role in the conflict.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 28, 2026
It seemed as if all the realities of living there had finally settled in his mind, like hearing a final diagnosis of terminal cancer.
From "The Maze Runner" by James Dashner
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.
