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 of actually

• honestly
• frankly
• really
• indeed

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

In fact, some Californians who moved to Texas are actually concerned about the blue wave. — Terry Castleman, Los Angeles Times, 10 Nov. 2026

In the 2003 film, Knightley plays Juliet, a woman who gets married only to learn that her husband’s best friend is actually in love with her. — Payton Turkeltaub, Variety, 10 Nov. 2026

More important than even the connections that are made between the mentors and the mentees here are actually the relationships made among the people who are attending. — Ryan Lattanzio, IndieWire, 10 Nov. 2026

According to the complaint, the company used high-pressure sales practices to get consumers to signing up for personal loans which actually transferred their title to Home Savers 911 without informing them. — Dan Raby, CBS News, 10 Nov. 2026

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

Rhymes for actually

• dually
• contextually
• unusually

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