as in historical
restricted to or based on fact
a literal account of the explorer's adventures is actually a lot less interesting than his own exaggerated stories
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Recent Examples of literal
Drivers get literal hours to stare at the bumper sticker on the car ahead and chew over their lives.
—
Staff Report, Hartford Courant, 10 Mar. 2025
Living alongside his wife and son, Goldberg has one eye over his shoulder always, paranoid the (literal) skeletons in his closet might soon spill out.
—Anna Kaufman, USA TODAY, 10 Mar. 2025
The promise of Severance is a seductive one: The titular procedure separates a person’s work self from the rest of their identity, granting them a literal work-life balance.
—Emma Stefansky, The Atlantic, 6 Mar. 2025
Yet those same machines can effortlessly run any flavor of Linux, which could prevent literal tons of e-waste.
—Jason Evangelho, Forbes, 5 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for literal
Staff Report, Hartford Courant, 10 Mar. 2025
Living alongside his wife and son, Goldberg has one eye over his shoulder always, paranoid the (literal) skeletons in his closet might soon spill out.
—Anna Kaufman, USA TODAY, 10 Mar. 2025
The promise of Severance is a seductive one: The titular procedure separates a person’s work self from the rest of their identity, granting them a literal work-life balance.
—Emma Stefansky, The Atlantic, 6 Mar. 2025
Yet those same machines can effortlessly run any flavor of Linux, which could prevent literal tons of e-waste.
—Jason Evangelho, Forbes, 5 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for literal
Recent Examples of Synonyms for literal
Adjective
-
Even in a historical context, the Thunder’s season has been exceptional.—
Nick Crain,
Forbes.com,
27 Mar. 2025
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Despite historical accounts of women teaching and attending university lectures behind screens from the late Middle Ages, such depictions were more myth than truth.—
Manuela Callari,
Smithsonian Magazine,
26 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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But there’s a simple way to take control of the situation: stay factual.—
Mark Murphy,
Forbes,
21 Mar. 2025
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Next week, the NTSB intends to release the hazardous materials, meteorological and survival factors factual reports and a study conducted by its office of engineering on vessel size increases and associated safety risk.—
Alexandra Koch,
Fox News,
21 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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That versatility is, in a lot of ways, the true beauty of unicorns.—
Sarah Shachat,
IndieWire,
28 Mar. 2025
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Voters are not famous for their patience or, as Joe Biden could explain, their fondness for higher prices, something that’s true even if this is a one-off adjustment.—
The Editors,
National Review,
28 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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Inti Cordera is a documentary film director, producer, and founder of La Maroma Productions and the DocsMX festival & organization in Mexico City.—
Matthew Carey,
Deadline,
20 Mar. 2025
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Read IndieWire’s earlier story on what Trump dismantling Voice of America means for documentary filmmakers and other public media.—
Anthony Kaufman,
IndieWire,
19 Mar. 2025
Video
Literally
A word that (literally) drives people nuts
Cite this Entry
“Literal.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/literal. Accessed 31 Mar. 2025.
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