literally

adverb

Definition of literallynext
as in accurately
in a literal, true, or accurate way She is not one for hyperbole—all of her warnings should be taken literally. The employees took the CEO's remarks literally and rightfully worried about the future health of the company.

Related Words

Relevance

Dissimilar Words

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of literally Oklahoma State has 92 new players this season, which is an NCAA record — quite literally a brand new football team. — Nick Baumgardner, New York Times, 6 Sep. 2026 The home country is hostile, literally and culturally, so the characters often turn to America and England, places that are marginally safer but only just. — Tembe Denton-Hurst, Vulture, 4 Sep. 2026 Elsewhere, Huston exudes a terrifying blankness while writing his Spinoza magnum opus paper dressed literally in a suit with an upright piano in the room, and a Chekhov’s google search of Nembutal in his browser history. — Ryan Lattanzio, IndieWire, 4 Sep. 2026 Brooks Canopy Packable Jacket Brooks is best known for its (literally) record-breaking footwear, sure, but the quality of its apparel line also cannot be overstated. — Stacia Datskovska, Footwear News, 4 Sep. 2026 See All Example Sentences for literally
Recent Examples of Synonyms for literally
  1. accurately
  2. directly
Adverb
  • There are very few tools that can accurately assess skills, but relying on managerial judgment alone is fraught with biases like the halo, horn and recency effects.
    — Tonushree Mondal, Forbes.com, 1 Sep. 2026
  • But Matt Kaufman, chief safety officer at Roblox, said last year that for people between about 5 and 25, the system can accurately estimate their age within one or two years.
    — Barbara Ortutay, Los Angeles Times, 1 Sep. 2026
Definition of accurately
Adverb
  • Now Betancourt’s company, North American Blue Energy Partners, based in Barbados, could be one of the first private firms to directly participate in Venezuela’s oil industry since it was nationalized half a century ago.
    — Ishaan Tharoor, New Yorker, 3 Sep. 2026
  • Playing the helpful citizen, Martinez drove his literal truckload of ALPR bits directly to the Sheriff’s department, where he was promptly taken into custody.
    — Joe Wilkins, Futurism, 3 Sep. 2026
Definition of directly

Browse Nearby Words

literality
literally
literalness
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Literally.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/literally. Accessed 8 Sep. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

A List of Most Commonly Confused Words

Why do we use apostrophes to show possession?

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

Stay Woke

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Words of the Week - Sept. 4
See More

Popular

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

The Longest Long Words List

Stay Woke
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
anagrams on a chalk board
Word Builder Quiz Vol. 2 Pick the letter that when added to a word will ma...
See All