actual

ac·tu·al

 (ăk′cho͞o-əl)

adj.

1.

a. Existing in reality and not potential, possible, simulated, or false: The actual damages were less than first reported. In the actual test, the mechanism did not work as the computer model predicted. See Synonyms at real¹.

b. Based on fact: The actual history of the voyage is different from the popular accounts.

2. Conforming to the characteristics of a group or type; typical: Is he an actual doctor or a fake?

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[Middle English, from Old French, active, from Late Latin āctuālis, from Latin āctus, past participle of agere, to drive, do; see ag- in Indo-European roots.]

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

actual

(ˈæktʃʊəl)

adj

1. existing in reality or as a matter of fact

2. real or genuine

3. existing at the present time; current

4. (usually preceded by your) informal often facetious Brit (intensifier): that music's by your actual Mozart, isn't it?.

[C14: actuel existing, from Late Latin āctuālis relating to acts, practical, from Latin āctus act]

Usage: The excessive use of actual and actually should be avoided. They are unnecessary in sentences such as in actual fact, he is forty-two, and he did actually go to the play but did not enjoy it

Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

ac•tu•al

(ˈæk tʃu əl)

adj.

1. existing in act, fact, or reality; real: an actual case; the actual cost.

2. existing now; present; current: the ship's actual position.

[1275–1325; < Late Latin āctuālis= Latin āctu- (s. of āctus act) + -ālis -al¹]

ac′tu•al•ness, n.

Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.

actual

1. 'actual'

You use actual to emphasize that the place, object, or person you are talking about is the real or genuine one.

The predicted results and the actual results are very different.

The interpretation bore no relation to the actual words spoken.

Be Careful!
You only use actual in front of a noun. You do not say that something 'is actual'.

2. 'current' and 'present'

You do not use 'actual' to describe something that is happening, being done, or being used at the present time. Instead you use current or present.

The store needs more than $100,000 to survive the current crisis.

Is the present situation really any different from many others in the past?

Collins COBUILD English Usage © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 2004, 2011, 2012

Thesaurus

Adj.	1.	actual - presently existing in fact and not merely potential or possible; "the predicted temperature and the actual temperature were markedly different"; "actual and imagined conditions" existent potential, possible - existing in possibility; "a potential problem"; "possible uses of nuclear power"
	2.	actual - taking place in reality; not pretended or imitated; "we saw the actual wedding on television"; "filmed the actual beating" real, existent - being or occurring in fact or actuality; having verified existence; not illusory; "real objects"; "real people; not ghosts"; "a film based on real life"; "a real illness"; "real humility"; "Life is real! Life is earnest!"- Longfellow
	3.	actual - being or reflecting the essential or genuine character of something; "her actual motive"; "a literal solitude like a desert"- G.K.Chesterton; "a genuine dilemma" literal, genuine, real true - consistent with fact or reality; not false; "the story is true"; "it is undesirable to believe a proposition when there is no ground whatever for supposing it true"- B. Russell; "the true meaning of the statement"
	4.	actual - existing in act or fact; "rocks and trees...the actual world"; "actual heroism"; "the actual things that produced the emotion you experienced" factual real, existent - being or occurring in fact or actuality; having verified existence; not illusory; "real objects"; "real people; not ghosts"; "a film based on real life"; "a real illness"; "real humility"; "Life is real! Life is earnest!"- Longfellow
	5.	actual - being or existing at the present moment; "the ship's actual position is 22 miles due south of Key West" current - occurring in or belonging to the present time; "current events"; "the current topic"; "current negotiations"; "current psychoanalytic theories"; "the ship's current position"

Based on WordNet 3.0, Farlex clipart collection. © 2003-2012 Princeton University, Farlex Inc.

actual

adjective

1. genuine, real, true, confirmed, authentic, verified, truthful, bona fide, dinkum (Austral & N.Z. informal) They are using local actors or the actual people involved.
genuine made-up, probable, untrue, unreal, fictitious

2. real, substantial, concrete, definite, tangible She had written some notes, but she hadn't started the actual work.
real supposed, theoretical, hypothetical

Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002

actual

adjective

1. Occurring or existing in act or fact:

existent, extant.

2. Not counterfeit or copied:

authentic, bona fide, genuine, good, indubitable, original, real, true, undoubted, unquestionable.

3. In agreement or correspondence with fact:

real, true.

The American Heritage® Roget's Thesaurus. Copyright © 2013, 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Translations

فِعْلِي، حَقِيقِي، رَاهِنفِعْلِيّ

skutečný

faktiskvirkelig

tatsächlichwirklichaktuellgegenwärtig

πραγματικός

realverdaderoactualefectivoexistente

nykyinentämänhetkinentodellinenvarsinainen

réelactueleffectif

stvaran

aktuálisfennállójelenlegiténylegesvalóságos

raunverulegur

realeveramenteeffettivoesistentein effetti

実際の

실제의

faktiškasiš tikrųjųtiesą sakanttikrastikroviškumas

faktisksīstspatiess

daadwerkelijkeigenlijkfeitelijkhuidigwerkelijk

faktiskvirkelig

rzeczywisty

realefetivo

действительныйистнинныйнастоящийнынешнийреальный

resničen

faktisk

ที่จริง

gerçekgerçekte

thực sự

实际的

actual

[ˈæktjʊəl]

A. ADJ

1. (= real) → real
the actual number is much higher than that → el número real es mucho más alto
the film was based on actual events → la película estaba basada en hechos reales
let's take an actual case/example → tomemos un caso/ejemplo concreto
there is no actual contract → no hay contrato propiamente dicho
you met an actual film star? → ¿has conocido a una estrella de cine de verdad?
in actual fact → en realidad
actual size → tamaño m real

2. (= precise) [amount, figure] → exacto; [words] → exacto, textual
I don't remember the actual figures → no recuerdo las cifras exactas
what were his actual words? → ¿cuáles fueron sus palabras exactas or textuales?

3. (= very) they couldn't find the actual gun that was used → no encontraron el arma que se utilizó
the film used the actual people involved as actors → la película utilizó como actores a los implicados

4. (= proper) the actual wedding procession starts at eleven → el desfile de boda propiamente dicho empieza a las once
on the actual day somebody will carry that for you → ese día alguien lo llevará por ti

B. CPD actual bodily harm N (Jur) → daños mpl físicos, lesiones fpl corporales
actual loss N (Comm) → pérdida f efectiva

Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005

actual

[ˈæktʃuəl] adj

(= real, genuine) [people, events] → réel(le), véritable; [number, words] → exact(e)
The film is based on actual events → Le film repose sur des faits réels.
What's the actual amount? → Quel est le montant exact?

(for emphasis) → à proprement parler
The actual wedding ceremony starts at 10am → La cérémonie du mariage à proprement parler commence à 10 heures.actual bodily harm n → coups mpl et blessures fpl

Collins English/French Electronic Resource. © HarperCollins Publishers 2005

actual

adj

→ eigentlich; reason, price also, result → tatsächlich; case, example → konkret; in actual fact → eigentlich; what were his actual words? → was genau hat er gesagt?; this is the actual house → das ist hier das Haus; there is no actual contract → es besteht kein eigentlicher Vertrag; your actual … (inf) → ein echter/eine echte/ein echtes …, der/die/das echte …; actual size → wahre Größe

(= precise) → genau; I don’t remember the actual figures → ich erinnere mich nicht an die genauen Zahlen

(= existing now) → derzeitig; actual state or situation → Ist-Zustand m

Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007

actual

[ˈæktjʊəl] adj (amount, result) → reale, vero/a, effettivo/a; (example) → concreto/a
in actual fact → in realtà
what were his actual words? → cosa ha detto esattamente?

Collins Italian Dictionary 1st Edition © HarperCollins Publishers 1995

actual

(ˈӕktʃuəl) adjective

real; existing; not imaginary. In actual fact he is not as stupid as you think he is. in werklikheid فِعْلِي، حَقِيقِي، رَاهِن действителен real skutečný tatsächlich faktisk; virkelig πραγματικόςreal tegelik واقعی todellinen réelבפועל, ממשי, אמיתי वास्तविक stvaran tényleges riil, sebenarnya raunverulegur reale 現実の 실제의 faktiškas, tikras īsts; patiess; faktisks hakikat sebenar werkelijkvirkelig, faktiskrzeczywisty, faktyczny په واقعي ډول real real действительный; существующий skutočný resničen stvaran faktisk, verklig แท้จริง gerçek, gerçekte 實際的 дійсний; справжній حقیقی ، واقعی thực sự 实际的

ˌactuˈality (-ˈӕ-) noun

(a) reality. the actuality of the situation. werklikheid حَقِيقَة، حَالِيَّة действителност realidade skutečnost, realita die Wirklichkeit virkelighed πραγματικότηταrealidad tegelikkus واقعیت todellisuus réalité מַמָשׁוּת वास्तव में/वस्तुत: stvarnost valóság benar-benar raunveruleiki realtà 現実 현존 tikroviškumas īstenība; realitāte kebenaran werkelijkheidvirkelighet realność رښتيا realidade realitate действительность realita stvarnost stvarnost verklighet, faktum ความจริง gerçek, hakikat 現實 дійсність, реальність واقعیت ،امر واقع sự thực 现实

ˈactually adverb

1. really. She actually saw the accident happen. regtig فِي الوَاقِع، فِي الحَقِيقَة، فِعْلاً действително na realidade skutečně, opravdu wirklich faktisk; faktiskt; virkelig; virkeligt πραγματικά, όντωςen realidad, realmente tõepoolest واقعاً؛ در عمل todella réellement באמת, ממש, בעצם, בפועל वास्तव में stvarno valóban benar-benar, sebenarnya raunverulega in realtà; veramente, realmente 実際に 실제로 iš tikrųjų īstenībā; patiesībā memang betul echtegentlig, faktiskrzeczywiście, faktycznie په رښتيا سره، واقعاً. na realidade într-adevăr действительно skutočne, naozaj v resnici zaista verkligen, faktiskt อย่างที่เกิดขึ้นตามจริง gerçekten, hakikaten 實際上 справді, дійсно در اصل thực sự 实际上

2. in fact. Actually, I'm doing something else this evening. eintlik فِي الحَقِيقَه всъщност de fato ve skutečnosti, vlastně eigentlich faktisk; i virkeligheden στην πραγματικότητα de hecho tegelikult در واقع itse asiassa en faitלמעשה, לאמיתו של דבר zapravo a helyzet az, hogy... sesungguhnya raunar in realtà 本当のことをいうと 사실은 tiesą sakant faktiski sebenarnya eigenlijk faktisk, i virkelighetenwłaściwie په واقعيت كي de facto de fapt на самом деле v skutočnosti, vlastne pravzaprav zapravo faktiskt, egentligen ตามความเป็นจริง gerçekte, aslında 事實上 насправді در اصل ، فی الحقیقت thực tế 事实上

Kernerman English Multilingual Dictionary © 2006-2013 K Dictionaries Ltd.

actual

→ فِعْلِيّ skutečný faktisk wirklich πραγματικός real varsinainen réel stvaran reale 実際の 실제의 daadwerkelijk faktisk rzeczywisty real фактический faktisk ที่จริง gerçek thực sự 实际的

Multilingual Translator © HarperCollins Publishers 2009

actual

a. actual, real, verdadero-a;

adv. en realidad, actualmente;

the ___ symptom → el síntoma verdadero.

English-Spanish Medical Dictionary © Farlex 2012