literal

Definition

• adj. without interpretation or embellishment
• adj. limited to the explicit meaning of a word or text
• adj. avoiding embellishment or exaggeration (used for emphasis)

Word forms

Plural

literals

Example sentences

1. a.

   When I say it's a 'piece of cake', I don't mean it in a literal sense.

2. n.

   The book had a literal that changed the meaning of an important sentence.

3. n.

   In programming, a literal is a fixed value that is directly written into the code.