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Synonyms

reality

American  
[ree-al-i-tee] / riˈæl ɪ ti /

noun

plural

realities

  1. the state or quality of being real.

  2. resemblance to what is real.

  3. a real thing or fact.

  4. real things, facts, or events taken as a whole; state of affairs.

    the reality of the business world; vacationing to escape reality.

  5. Philosophy.

    1. something that exists independently of ideas concerning it.

    2. something that exists independently of all other things and from which all other things derive.

  6. something that is real.

  7. something that constitutes a real or actual thing, as distinguished from something that is merely apparent.

adjective

  1. noting or pertaining to a TV program or film that portrays nonactors interacting or competing with each other in real but contrived situations, allegedly without a script.

    a popular reality show; reality TV.

idioms

  1. in reality, in fact or truth; actually.

    brave in appearance, but in reality a coward.
reality British  
/ rɪˈælɪtɪ /

noun

  1. the state of things as they are or appear to be, rather than as one might wish them to be

  2. something that is real

  3. the state of being real

  4. philosophy

    1. that which exists, independent of human awareness

    2. the totality of facts as they are independent of human awareness of them See also conceptualism Compare appearance

  5. actually; in fact

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

  • antireality adjective
  • nonreality noun
  • proreality noun

Etymology

Origin of reality

From the Medieval Latin word reālitās, dating back to 1540–50. See real 1, -ity

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.

Columnist Nicole Nguyen looks at how close we are to making them a reality.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 4, 2026

Major, a professor of social mobility at the University of Exeter, added: "The reality is that a teacher these days is a counsellor, a social worker, a poverty alleviator and a guardian of respectful values."

From BBC • Apr. 4, 2026

Mortensen isn’t totally out of the reality TV circuit, though.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 3, 2026

Fruit is an absurd but also simple way to reflect the formulaic, sensationalist and stereotypical world of dating reality TV, Lupinacci said.

From Barron's • Apr. 3, 2026

Dad would say it so often though, that it became truth, and I stopped questioning the reality of it.

From "Red Flags and Butterflies" by Sheryl Azzam

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.