literally
adverb
Simple meaning
Without overstatement or understatement, or false or misleading words.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
literuhleeSay the bold part a little louder.
IPA pronunciation (US)
ˈlɪtɚəli
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
intensifier before a figurative expression
Without exaggeration
“Our eyes were literally pinned to TV during the Gulf War.”
Without overstatement or understatement, or false or misleading words.
With phrasings that might normally be used or understood as figurative: truly; not figuratively; not as an idiom or metaphor.
Word for word, exactly as stated.
Draws attention to a pun or other wordplay involving an idiom.
colloquial
Used as a general intensifier or dramatiser, sometimes tending towards a meaningless filler.
Word at a Glance
- Difficulty
- B1 · Intermediate (estimated)
- Frequency
- Common
- Formality
- Informal
- Typical Use
- Everyday English
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: (intensifier before a figurative expression) without exaggeration
Used this way, literally is a common word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It usually sounds natural in a wide range of settings.
“Our eyes were literally pinned to TV during the Gulf War.”
- Emotional tone
- Neutral
- Formality
- Neutral
- Intensity
- Not strongly marked
- How common
- Common
- Connotation
- No strong connotation
- Usage feel
- Neutral and straightforward
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
More ways to use literally
- “Literally translated.”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.
A mistake in printed matter resulting from mechanical failures of some kind.
Usage
Traditionally means "in the exact sense". Using it for emphasis is common in speech but avoided in formal writing.
Common: “literally translated word for word”
Less natural: “literally exploded with joy (informal)”
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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.