actually
adverb
Simple meaning
in reality, truthfully, or in fact
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
akchoouhleeSay the bold part a little louder.
IPA pronunciation (US)
ˈæktʃuəli
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
adverb
modal
Used to imply that one would expect the fact to be the opposite of that stated; surprisingly
“You may actually be doing the right thing by walking out.”
modal
In act or in fact; really; in truth; positively.
modal
In actual fact
“To be nominally but not actually independent.”
Word at a Glance
- Difficulty
- A1 · Beginner (estimated)
- Frequency
- Very Common
- Typical Use
- Everyday English
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: Used to imply that one would expect the fact to be the opposite of that stated; surprisingly
'Actually' is often used to correct a misconception or to introduce a surprising fact. It can soften a contradiction or add emphasis, like saying, 'Actually, I prefer coffee.'
“You may actually be doing the right thing by walking out.”
- Emotional tone
- Neutral
- Formality
- Neutral
- Intensity
- Not strongly marked
- How common
- Common
- Connotation
- No strong connotation
- Usage feel
- Neutral and straightforward
Where you'll really hear it
Everyday conversation
“I thought it was hard, but it was actually quite easy.”
Meeting discussion
“That's a good point, but actually, we already tried that.”
Informal email
“The party is actually on Friday, not Saturday.”
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
More ways to use actually
- “To be nominally but not actually independent.”adverb
- “You may actually be doing the right thing by walking out.”adverb
- “The transmission screen shows the picture that is actually on the air.”adverb
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Common Patterns and Combinations
How this word naturally appears with others.
Word Family
Related forms, grouped by how they connect.
Inflected forms
Grammatical variations of the same word.
Presently existing in fact and not merely potential or possible.
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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.