: existing or occurring in reality : drawn from or drawing on actual events or situations : real-life
a real-world example
… the complex relationship between a word and the real-world thing it labels.Jean Aitchison
Digital objects aren't bound by the same constraints as real-world objects—that is, broadly speaking, the whole point of digital objects—but they're often made to look like real-world objects anyway.Lev Grossman
… combine the rigors of academics with the soothing realities of real-world applications.Ricardo Bilton
The paintings are essentially abstract, but they don't feel abstract. They feature, besides passages of figurative drawing, a real-world aura …Peter Schjeldahl

Examples of real-world in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web That’s a figure that reflects real-world sentiment. Ryan Erik King / Jalopnik, Quartz, 14 Mar. 2024 Third, real-world interactions primarily involve one‐to‐one communication, or sometimes one-to-several. Jonathan Haidt, The Atlantic, 13 Mar. 2024 Detached from measurable fundamentals and real-world utility, fluctuations in the price of bitcoin reflect not much more than a collective belief that the price will either rise or fall. Joel Khalili, WIRED, 12 Mar. 2024 This requires collaboration between technology companies, policymakers, and civil society to develop and enforce regulations that deter malicious actors and protect users from real-world harm, instead of focusing only on imaginary doomsday scenarios from sci-fi movies. Alexandru Voica, Fortune, 11 Mar. 2024 Gunderson is a car dealership owner running as a political outsider and stressing his real-world experience as a businessman. Michael Smolens, San Diego Union-Tribune, 10 Mar. 2024 Chapter 3 1969 — 1979 Affirmative action booms Widespread adoption of affirmative action and equal opportunity measures leads to real-world advances. Emma Kumer, Washington Post, 9 Mar. 2024 However, robust deployment in real-world applications is still an open challenge. IEEE Spectrum, 8 Mar. 2024 Like real-world autocrats, Winslet’s Elena Vernham is a person to tiptoe around and agree with. Robert Lloyd, Los Angeles Times, 3 Mar. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'real-world.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1963, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of real-world was in 1963

Dictionary Entries Near real-world

Cite this Entry

“Real-world.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/real-world. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

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