actually

adverb

ac·​tu·​al·​ly ˈak-ch(ə-w)ə-lē 

-sh(ə-w)ə-lē;

ˈaksh-lē,

ˈaks-

1

: in act or in fact : really

trying to find out what actually happened

won't actually arrive for an hour

2

: in point of fact

—used to suggest something unexpected

was surprised to learn that she could actually speak German

Synonyms

• admittedly
• forsooth
• frankly
• honestly
• indeed
• really
• truly
• truthfully
• verily

Examples of actually in a Sentence

actually, I'd rather spend the evening at home

I call her Aunt Emily, but she is actually my cousin, not my aunt.

Recent Examples on the Web

Corporate Parallels When looking to fill CEO slots at their companies, boards of directors might actually prefer a few of the characteristics that have stood out in Trump’s picks. —Edward Segal, Forbes, 3 Dec. 2024

But co-showrunner Rashad Raisani tells Entertainment Weekly that the Lone Star team actually started with a completely different plan for the Gabriel mystery. —Patrick Gomez, EW.com, 3 Dec. 2024

The ferocious cold snap that's overspread much of the eastern half of the United States is forecast to continue and actually intensify by midweek, meteorologists said Monday. —Doyle Rice, USA TODAY, 3 Dec. 2024

But Russia’s commitment to Syria has not actually wavered, and Russia is not really distracted. —Nicole Grajewski, The Atlantic, 3 Dec. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Middle English actuelly, from actuel, actual actual + -ly -ly entry 2

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

actually

adverb

ac·​tu·​al·​ly ˈak-ch(ə-w)ə-lē 

ˈak-sh(ə-w)ə-lē

: in fact or in truth : really

she actually spoke Spanish

actually, I didn't want to go