really

adverb

re·​al·​ly ˈrē-(ə-)lē 

1

a

: in reality : actually

things as they really are

there was nothing peculiar about her doing this, really

—Peter Taylor

b

: truly, unquestionably

—used as an intensifier

a really beautiful day

c

: very sense 1

look really close

he runs really fast

2

—used to emphasize an assertion

you really should read Yeats

really, you're being ridiculous

Synonyms

• actually
• authentically
• certifiably
• genuinely
• truly
• veritably
• very

Examples of really in a Sentence

The dog runs really fast.

The water is really hot.

She's a really nice person.

I had a really good time at the party.

Recent Examples on the Web

Local officials need to exploit that vulnerability to protect Carroll’s citizens from lawmakers who want to raise their taxes, run their schools and really don’t care what the people of Carroll County think about anything. —Chris Roemer, Baltimore Sun, 16 Jan. 2025

And size of the national security threat is really proportional to the size of the user base. —Michael Gfoeller and David H. Rundell, Newsweek, 16 Jan. 2025

This human oversight, combined with all those advanced verification techniques, is really the key to helping institutions maintain trust and security in this era of rapidly evolving fraud tactics. —Quora, Forbes, 16 Jan. 2025

Trade always had its place, but before Trump started hammering away at the issue, the decades-long debate over imports and tariffs was really argued within predetermined bounds. —Evan Clark, WWD, 16 Jan. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Phrases Containing really

• not really

Kids Definition

really

adverb

re·​al·​ly ˈrē-(ə-)lē 

ˈri(-ə)l-ē

1

: in actual fact : actually

didn't really mean it

2

: without question : truly

a really beautiful day

3

: very entry 2 sense 2

look really close

he runs really fast

4

: to be honest : frankly