literalists
Word-for-word readers
Literalists are people who interpret texts, statements, or doctrines according to their exact wording rather than seeking figurative or metaphorical meaning.
The term appears most often in religious contexts, where literalists read scripture as factual history: Biblical literalists believe the Earth was created in six actual days.
The word can carry a dismissive tone, implying rigid or unsophisticated thinking.
In identical wording
- word-for-wordExactly as stated
- face-valueStated monetary amount
- explicitClearly and directly expressed
- directUndeviating or to guide
concrete · factual · precise · exact · unambiguous · straightforward · denotative · nonfigurative
Strict original-doctrine adherent
- scripturalOf sacred writings
- biblicalOf sacred texts
- orthodoxConforming to established belief
- doctrinaireRigidly attached to doctrine
dogmatic · creationist · evangelical · conservative · traditionalist · hardline · uncompromising · strict
Unable to bend
- inflexibleUnable to bend
- pedanticExcessively concerned with minor rules
- unimaginativeLacking creative originality
- humorlessWithout wit or levity
narrow · precise · exacting · meticulous · scrupulous · perfectionist · nitpicking · stickler
verbatim
In identical wording
- word-for-wordExactly as stated
- face-valueStated monetary amount
- explicitClearly and directly expressed
direct · concrete · factual · precise · exact · unambiguous · straightforward · denotative · nonfigurative · matter-of-fact
fundamentalist
Strict original-doctrine adherent
- scripturalOf sacred writings
- biblicalOf sacred texts
- orthodoxConforming to established belief
doctrinaire · dogmatic · creationist · evangelical · conservative · traditionalist · hardline · uncompromising · strict · devout
rigid
Unable to bend
- inflexibleUnable to bend
- pedanticExcessively concerned with minor rules
- unimaginativeLacking creative originality
humorless · narrow · precise · exacting · meticulous · scrupulous · perfectionist · nitpicking · stickler · fussy
- fundamentalistsfundamentalists, true believers, zealots, dogmatists, absolutists
- Sectariansfundamentalists, Puritans, Amish, Gnostics, Huguenots
literalistssymbolists
Artists using emblems over direct statement
interpreters · deconstructionists · typologists · mystics · mythologizers
literalistsmodernists
Advocates of contemporary approaches
liberals · revisionists · progressives · reformists · adapters