Really vs Literally - What's the difference?
really | literally | Synonyms |
(lb) Actually; in fact; in reality.
:
Very (modifying an adjective); very much (modifying a verb).
:
*, chapter=10
, title= *
*:There was also hairdressing: hairdressing, too, really was hairdressing in those times — no running a comb through it and that was that. It was curled, frizzed, waved, put in curlers overnight, waved with hot tongs;.
Indicating surprise at, or requesting confirmation of, some new information; to express skepticism.
Indicating that what was just said was obvious and unnecessary; contrived incredulity
(colloquial, chiefly, US) Indicating affirmation, agreement.
Indicating displeasure at another person's behaviour or statement.
(speech act) word for word; not figuratively; not as an idiom or metaphor
* {{quote-news
, year=2012
, date=May 24
, author=Nathan Rabin
, title=Film: Reviews: Men In Black 3
, work=The Onion AV Club
(degree, proscribed) used non-literally as an intensifier for figurative statements : virtually (often considered incorrect; see usage notes)
* 1827 , Sir Walter Scott, Chronicles of the Canongate
* 1993 , , Real Magic , page 193:
* 2009 , :
(colloquial) Used as a generic downtoner : just, merely.
Literally is a synonym of really.
As adverbs the difference between really and literally
is that really is actually; in fact; in reality while literally is word for word; not figuratively; not as an idiom or metaphor.As an interjection really
is indicating surprise at, or requesting confirmation of, some new information; to express skepticism.really
English
Adverb
(en adverb)The Mirror and the Lamp, passage=It was a joy to snatch some brief respite, and find himself in the rectory drawing–room. Listening here was as pleasant as talking; just to watch was pleasant. The young priests who lived here wore cassocks and birettas; their faces were fine and mild, yet really strong, like the rector's face; and in their intercourse with him and his wife they seemed to be brothers.}}
Usage notes
* Like its synonyms, really is, in practice, often used to preface an opinion, rather than a fact. (See also usage notes for .) : Increasingly people are recognising what's really important is having children. '>citationSynonyms
* (actually) actually, in fact, indeed, truly * (sense) soStatistics
*Interjection
(en interjection)- A: He won the Nobel Prize yesterday.
- B: Really?
- A: I've just been reading Shakespeare - he's one of the best authors like, ever!
- B: Really .
- A: That girl talks about herself way too much.
- B: Really . She's a nightmare.
- Well, really ! How rude.
Synonyms
* you don't say, no kidding, oh really, no reallyReferences
literally
English
Alternative forms
* litterally (obsolete)Adverb
(-)- When I saw on the news that there would be no school tomorrow because of the snowstorm, I literally jumped for joy, and hit my head on the ceiling fan.
citation, page= , passage=Sequels to fish-out-of-water comedies make progressively less sense the longer a series continues. By the time Crocodile Dundee In Los Angeles rolled around in 2001, 15 years after the first Crocodile Dundee became a surprise blockbuster, the title character had been given an awfully long time to grow acclimated to those kooky Americans. Men In Black 3 finagles its way out of this predicament by literally resetting the clock with a time-travel premise that makes Will Smith both a contemporary intergalactic cop in the late 1960s and a stranger to Josh Brolin, who plays the younger version of Smith’s stone-faced future partner, Tommy Lee Jones.}}
- The house was literally electrified; and it was only from witnessing the effects of her genius that he could guess to what a pitch theatrical excellence could be carried.
- You literally become the ball in a tennis match, you become the report that you are working on
- - She took a giant shit on my face. Literally.
- - Literally?
- - Well, no, not literally . That's disgusting. What's wrong with you?
- You literally put it in the microwave for five minutes and it's done.