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

• 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

This is our first glimpse of Liam Hemsworth as Geralt of Rivia actually in action. —Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 14 Sep. 2025

Ole Miss actually scored twice more on the drive but both scores were brought back because of penalties. —Arkansas Online, 14 Sep. 2025

That meant Mendoza would actually find the housing and pay for it with King’s money. —ProPublica, 13 Sep. 2025

Manny Machado actually gave the Padres a 1-0 lead with a home run in the first inning. —Kevin Acee, San Diego Union-Tribune, 13 Sep. 2025

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

• contextually
• unusually
• dually

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