literal meaning
Words at face-value
Literal meaning is what words denote at face value, without metaphor, irony, or figurative extension.
When someone says I'm literally starving, the literal meaning is actual starvation—though the speaker usually means something less dire.
Distinguishing literal from figurative meaning helps clarify whether language should be taken at face value or interpreted: The literal meaning of "break a leg" is injury, but actors use it to wish good luck.
- denotationWord's explicit dictionary meaning
- exactPerfectly correct, no deviation
- preciseExactly correct, no error
- word-for-wordExactly as stated
- verbatimIn identical wording
by the book · explicit · plain · plain English · straightforward · dictionary · surface · face-value · actual · strict · concrete · unembellished · no frills · direct · factual · textbook · black-and-white · cut and dried
- languagelanguage, word, words, grammar, spelling
- vocabularyword, words, new words, term, terms
- meaningsense, significance, denotation, definition, connotation
- interpretationinterpretive dance, translation, interpreting, translating, construing
- literary analysischaracter analysis, book review, plot, critical analysis, analysis
- language nuancesnuance, idiom, idioms, connotation, denotation
literal meaningfigurative meaning
Non-literal intended significance
metaphorical meaning · symbolic meaning · metaphor · figurative language · implied meaning
literal meaningdeeper meaning
Significance beyond the surface
hidden meaning · subtext · spiritual meaning · symbolic significance · between the lines
literal, literally, literalness, literalism, literalist, literate, literacy, illiterate, illiteracy