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.
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Recent Examples of literally
Koolaburra by Ugg Burree Platform Slippers Comfy, supportive, and elevated (literally), the Koolaburra by Ugg platform slippers have the plush, cozy feel of your favorite house shoes with a sturdy sole that Amazon shoppers say is both comfortable and supportive.
—
Chaise Sanders, Travel + Leisure, 5 Nov. 2025
Getting into the habit of sending thank-you notes can, literally, pay off.
—Angela Haupt, Time, 5 Nov. 2025
Breadcrumbs are the glue that literally holds this dish together in delicious effect.
—Kimberly Holland, Southern Living, 5 Nov. 2025
By showing that light can quite literally nudge atoms in two-dimensional semiconductors, the research opens a path toward tunable, light-responsive materials that could reshape the future of computing and sensing, one photon push at a time.
—Neetika Walter, Interesting Engineering, 4 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for literally
Chaise Sanders, Travel + Leisure, 5 Nov. 2025
Getting into the habit of sending thank-you notes can, literally, pay off.
—Angela Haupt, Time, 5 Nov. 2025
Breadcrumbs are the glue that literally holds this dish together in delicious effect.
—Kimberly Holland, Southern Living, 5 Nov. 2025
By showing that light can quite literally nudge atoms in two-dimensional semiconductors, the research opens a path toward tunable, light-responsive materials that could reshape the future of computing and sensing, one photon push at a time.
—Neetika Walter, Interesting Engineering, 4 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for literally
Recent Examples of Synonyms for literally
Adverb
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Wu faced the challenge of teaching a French animation studio, Blue Spirit Animation, to animate Japanese culture accurately.—
Naman Ramachandran,
Variety,
5 Nov. 2025
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Certain skills can be developed to more accurately grasp what facial cues actually mean.—
Matt Fuchs,
Time,
4 Nov. 2025
Adverb
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Flyers should try to mitigate any headaches from delays and cancellations by avoiding booking flights with layovers, the non-profit US Public Interest Research Group says, and opt to make reservations directly with the airline rather than a third-party website.—
Emma Tucker,
CNN Money,
8 Nov. 2025
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Associated Press text, photo, graphic, audio and/or video material shall not be published, broadcast, rewritten for broadcast or publication or redistributed directly or indirectly in any medium.—
Terry Mattingly,
Arkansas Online,
8 Nov. 2025
Video
Literally
A word that (literally) drives people nuts
Cite this Entry
“Literally.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/literally. Accessed 11 Nov. 2025.
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