Actually

Pronunciation

• UK IPA: /ˈæk.(t)ʃ(ÊŠ).É™.li/
• US IPA: /ˈæk.(t)ʃ(u).É™.li/

Origin

actual ("real, true, veritable") + -ly

Full definition of actually

Adverb

1. (modal) In act or in fact; really; in truth; positively.Actually, I had nothing to do with that incident.
2. (obsolete) activelyNeither actually ... nor passively. — Fuller.

Alternative forms

• actially nonstandard

Usage notes

In some other languages a word of similar spelling means "now" or "currently"; (e.g., Portuguese "atualmente", Spanish "actualmente", French "actuellement", German "aktuell", Italian "attualmente", Czech "aktuálně"). This leads many non-native speakers of English to use "actually" when they mean "now" or "currently".

Some commentators have:

remarked upon the irony that this qualifier of veracity often introduces an utter lie;

She Literally Exploded, page 3 and,

noted that in many cases, actually functions as little more than a vacuous emphatic utterance.

ibidem, page 4

In practice, actually and its synonyms are often used to insinuate that the following is either unusual or contrary to a norm or preceding assumption, or to merely preface an overconfident opinion contrasting a previous statement or norm (as per 'vacuous emphasis' note above).

This is actually a really beautiful song. (contrasting opinion)

Actually, I'm not from France - I'm from Switzerland. (contrary from assumption)

At the check-out, the cashier actually greeted me for once. (contrary from norm)

Synonyms

• in reality
• literally
• really
• truthfully