Synonyms of literal

literal

adjective

ˈli-t(ə-)rəl 

as in historical

restricted to or based on fact

a literal account of the explorer's adventures is actually a lot less interesting than his own exaggerated stories

Synonyms & Similar Words

• historical
• factual
• true
• documentary
• nonfictional
• matter-of-fact
• real
• actual
• objective
• simple
• reliable
• authentic
• hard
• genuine
• documented
• bona fide
• verifiable
• demonstrable
• right
• plain
• provable
• sustainable
• irrefutable
• indisputable
• incontrovertible
• undeniable
• unquestionable
• established
• certain
• incontestable
• supportable
• undoubted
• confirmable

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• fictional
• theoretical
• fictitious
• hypothetical
• speculative
• nonhistorical
• fictionalized
• unhistorical
• imaginary
• apocryphal
• mythical
• undocumented
• fanciful
• legendary
• nonfactual
• invented
• nondocumentary
• exaggerated
• unauthentic
• make-believe
• chimerical
• fantastic
• imagined
• fabulous
• pretend
• embroidered
• made-up
• unsupportable
• insupportable

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of literal

But The Odyssey is the first time his devotion to the literal Real has been wielded so effectively. — Paul A. Thompson, Pitchfork, 21 July 2026

And yet, her casting as a literal demigoddess sparked outcry from a racist throng on social media. — Patrick Ryan, USA Today, 21 July 2026

In a news conference, Chait said the fall timing was not a literal deadline. — Howard Blume, Los Angeles Times, 21 July 2026

Those last forty days my father was alive was its own quarantine—the literal meaning of the word, after all, is forty days—often the forty days of mourning after a death, or rest after a birth. — Literary Hub, 20 July 2026

Video

Literally

A word that (literally) drives people nuts