Actual Meaning
/ˈækʃuəl/Definition, CEFR level B2, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
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Definition
adjrelating to a person's acts or deeds; active, practical
adjExisting in reality, not just potentially; really acted or acting; occurring in fact.
Sentence Examples
That is an actual fact.
This is an actual happening.
The actual cost was higher than the estimate.
CEFR Practice Quiz
The ____ cost of the renovation was much higher than the initial estimate provided by the contractor.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The ____ cost of the project was much lower than we expected.
Word Origin & History
From Middle English actual, actuel (“active”), from Anglo-Norman actuel, actual, and its source Late Latin actuālis (“active, practical”), from Latin actus (“act, action, performance”), from agere (“to do; to act”) + -alis (“-al”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *h₂éǵeti, from the root *h₂eǵ-. By surface analysis, act + -u- + -al.
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"In this slumbry agitation, besides her walking, and other actuall performances, what (at any time) haue you heard her say?"
— c. 1606 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Macbeth”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act V, scene i]:
"Let your holy and pious intention be actual; that is […] by a special prayer or action, […] given to God."
— 1650, Jeremy Taylor, The Rule and Exercises of Holy Living:
"Apparently, the holy Doctor was referring to actual, rather than original, sin; yet the basis of his argument for Mary's holiness, the divine maternity, would logically lead to the conclusion that she was free from original sin also."
— 1946, The American Ecclesiastical Review, volume 114:
"The original family who had begun to build a palace to rival Nonesuch had died out before they had put up little more than the gateway, so that the actual structure which had come down to posterity retained the secret magic of a promise rather than the overpowering splendour of a great architectural achievement."
— 1963, Margery Allingham, chapter 1, in The China Governess: A Mystery, London: Chatto & Windus, →OCLC:
"They also exposed the blatant discrepancy between the west's professed values and actual foreign policies."
— 2013 June 7, Gary Younge, “Hypocrisy lies at heart of Manning prosecution”, in The Guardian Weekly, volume 188, number 26, page 18:
Explore More B2 Vocabulary Words
CEFR Practice Quiz
The ____ cost of the renovation was much higher than the initial estimate provided by the contractor.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The ____ cost of the project was much lower than we expected.