realistic

adjective

re·​al·​is·​tic ˌrē-ə-ˈli-stik 

1

: of, relating to, or marked by literary or artistic realism : accurately representing what is natural or real

a realistic novel

realistic portraiture

realistic sound effects

Such films tend to be more expressionistic than realistic.

—Ira Konigsberg

: convincingly rendered to appear natural

Realistic, sensitive artificial skin would be an important step towards making the prosthetic feel like an extension of the body.

—Julian Smith

2

: able to see things as they really are and to deal with them in a practical way

a sensible, realistic person/attitude

trying to be realistic about their chances for success

3

: based on what is real rather than on what is wanted or hoped for : not impractical or visionary

a realistic plan

realistic expectations

setting realistic goals

It's not realistic to expect people to spend that much money on wedding gifts.

For the first time, people with cancers that have long outwitted science have a realistic chance of getting a miracle, too.

—Sharon Begley

realistically

ˌrē-ə-ˈli-sti-k(ə-)lē 

adverb

depicting a scene realistically

approaching a problem realistically

Synonyms of realistic

• pragmatic
• practical

Examples of realistic in a Sentence

high schoolers who need to be more realistic in their career choices, as so few people end up as rock stars

those special effects look really realistic—I'd never guess they were all computer-generated

Recent Examples on the Web

In this view, aggressive development with minimal new constraints is presented as the only realistic strategy to prevent hostile foreign powers from dominating advanced AI. — Los Angeles Times, 18 Sep. 2026

The most realistic outcome in Iran may be an unresolved stalemate. — Nadia Schadlow, Foreign Affairs, 18 Sep. 2026

Actual cannolis are depicted through gold-tone metal lace dubraes, and an even more realistic rendition of the desert appears on the insole. — Ian Servantes, Footwear News, 17 Sep. 2026

Now in practice, in a realistic experiment, any large system would be very quickly decohered by its, uh, immediate environment, by surrounding photons. — Quanta Magazine, 17 Sep. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1829, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing realistic

• photo-realistic

Rhymes for realistic

• artistic
• autistic
• ballistic
• cladistic
• heuristic
• holistic
• linguistic
• logistic
• monistic
• patristic
• sadistic
• simplistic

Kids Definition

realistic

adjective

re·​al·​is·​tic

ˌrē-ə-ˈlis-tik, 

ˌri-ə-

1

: true to life or nature

a realistic painting

2

: ready to see things as they really are and deal with them sensibly

a realistic approach

realistically

-ti-k(ə-)lē

adverb