What is another word for literal?
Synonyms for literal
ˈlɪt ər əllit·er·al
This thesaurus page includes all potential synonyms, words with the same meaning and similar terms for the word literal.
Wiktionary
literaladjective
Exactly as stated; read or understood without additional interpretation; according to the letter or verbal expression; real; not figurative or metaphorical.
The literal translation is hands full of bananas but it means empty-handed.
Antonyms:
figurative
English Synonyms and Antonyms
literal
Oral (Latin os, the mouth) signifies uttered through the mouth or (in common phrase) by word of mouth; verbal (Latin verbum, a word) signifies of, pertaining to, or connected with words, especially with words as distinguished from the ideas they convey; vocal (Latin vox, the voice) signifies of or pertaining to the voice, uttered or modulated by the voice, and especially uttered with or sounding with full, resonant voice; literal (Latin litera, a letter) signifies consisting of or expressed by letters, or according to the letter, in the broader sense of the exact meaning or requirement of the words used; what is called "the letter of the law" is its literal meaning without going behind what is expressed by the letters on the page. Thus oral applies to that which is given by spoken words in distinction from that which is written or printed; as, oral tradition; an oral examination. By this rule we should in strictness speak of an oral contract or an oral message, but verbal contract and verbal message, as indicating that which is by spoken rather than by written words, have become so fixed in the language that they can probably never be changed; this usage is also in line with other idioms of the language; as, "I give you my word," "a true man's word is as good as his bond," "by word of mouth," etc. A verbal translation may be oral or written, so that it is word for word; a literal translation follows the construction and idiom of the original as well as the words; a literal translation is more than one that is merely verbal; both verbal and literal are opposed to free. In the same sense, of attending to words only, we speak of verbal criticism, a verbal change. Vocal has primary reference to the human voice; as, vocal sounds, vocal music; vocal may be applied within certain limits to inarticulate sounds given forth by other animals than man; as, the woods were vocal with the songs of birds; oral is never so applied, but is limited to articulate utterance regarded as having a definite meaning; as, an oral statement.
Complete Dictionary of Synonyms and Antonyms
literal
Synonyms:
exact, grammatical, verbal, close, real, positive, actual, plainAntonyms:
general, substantial, metaphorical, free, spiritual
Princeton's WordNet
misprint, erratum, typographical error, typo, literal error, literaladjective
a mistake in printed matter resulting from mechanical failures of some kind
Synonyms:
misprint, literal error, erratum, typo, typographical errorAntonyms:
metonymical, analogical, false, metaphorical, synecdochical, inexact, fancy, metaphoric, metonymic, tropical, nonliteral, figurative, extended, synecdochic, poeticactual, genuine, literal, realadjective
being or reflecting the essential or genuine character of something
"her actual motive"; "a literal solitude like a desert"- G.K.Chesterton; "a genuine dilemma"
Synonyms:
true(a), actual, tangible, material, real, veridical, existent, genuine, factual, unfeigned, echt, substantial, real(a)Antonyms:
metonymic, metaphorical, fancy, synecdochical, metaphoric, synecdochic, analogical, extended, inexact, poetic, false, figurative, nonliteral, tropical, metonymicalliteraladjective
without interpretation or embellishment
"a literal depiction of the scene before him"
Synonyms:
actual, genuine, realAntonyms:
metaphoric, fancy, false, synecdochic, tropical, inexact, metaphorical, synecdochical, metonymical, figurative, analogical, poetic, extended, nonliteral, metonymicliteraladjective
limited to the explicit meaning of a word or text
"a literal translation"
Synonyms:
actual, genuine, realAntonyms:
synecdochic, metonymical, fancy, poetic, nonliteral, synecdochical, metaphorical, false, inexact, figurative, analogical, extended, tropical, metaphoric, metonymicliteraladjective
avoiding embellishment or exaggeration (used for emphasis)
"it's the literal truth"
Synonyms:
actual, genuine, realAntonyms:
metonymic, inexact, metaphorical, metaphoric, extended, synecdochical, nonliteral, false, poetic, analogical, figurative, fancy, metonymical, tropical, synecdochic
Dictionary of English Synonymes
literalnoun
Synonyms:
as regards lettersliteralnoun
Synonyms:
according to the exact meaning, not figurativeliteralnoun
Synonyms:
following the exact words, not free
PPDB, the paraphrase database
List of paraphrases for "literal":
Words popularity by usage frequency
ranking | word | |
---|---|---|
#212 | real | |
#735 | close | |
#812 | material | |
#1467 | positive | |
#1920 | actual | |
#1950 | oral | |
#3226 | plain | |
#3402 | exact | |
#4434 | substantial | |
#5018 | genuine | |
#6652 | vocal | |
#9729 | verbal | |
#12048 | literal | |
#13539 | tangible | |
#13806 | factual | |
#14768 | verbatim | |
#18199 | typo | |
#21867 | existent | |
#23026 | grammatical | |
#48909 | erratum | |
#69115 | artisanal | |
#70209 | echt | |
#105508 | misprint | |
#169588 | veridical | |
#218204 | unfeigned |
How to use literal in a sentence?
We’re putting our athletes through a lot of painful literal and figurative hoops and hurdles with really no resolution at the end of it to tell them that this is the standard that is being set for competition, there needs to be a joint effort to determine the metric because athletics and institutions, they go off of metrics and standards that can be applied to the masses.
It's literal pornography, that's the problem.
The way he kisses dictators' butts. I mean, the way he ignores that the Uyghurs are in literal concentration camps in Xinjiang right now. He hasn't lifted a finger on behalf of the Hong Kongers, the United States now regularly sells out our allies under his leadership. The way he treats women and spends like a drunken sailor. The ways I criticized President( Barack) Obama for that kind of spending I've criticized President Trump for as well. He mocks evangelicals behind closed doors. His family has treated the presidency like a business opportunity. He's flirted with White supremacists.
I’m not anti-gay, I’m not trying to eliminate the LGBTQ book collection, it's literal pornography, that's the problem.
We cloak it in metaphor -- instead of painting a very literal picture of the person sick in bed we have broader brush strokes and try to create some kind of fantastical environment that mimics that particular situation and within that fantastical environment you can change the circumstance and make them something more triumphant. if you are good friends someone, and you are with one another and have a very strong relationship I think it’s a wonderful and healthy thing to do to be supportive and be physically present and again turning all these emotions into something productive. Turning this darkness into something bright and positive or at least attempting to.
Translations for literal
From our Multilingual Translation Dictionary
- doslovnýCzech
- wörtlich, buchstäblichGerman
- κατά γράμμαGreek
- literalSpanish
- sananmukainen, kirjaimellinen, sanatarkkaFinnish
- littéral, épistolaireFrench
- բառացիArmenian
- bókstaflegurIcelandic
- alla lettera, letteraleItalian
- מילוליתHebrew
- 文字通り, 文字上の, 逐語的Japanese
- 정확한Korean
- literaal, strikt, letterlijk, letterDutch
- literałPolish
- literal, constantePortuguese
- literally, literalăRomanian
- точный, буквенный, буквальный, дословныйRussian
- ordagrann, bokstavligSwedish
- ממשYiddish
Get even more translations for literal »
Translation
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