lit‧e‧ral‧ly S2 / lɪt ə rəli / 副词

1 according to the most basic or original meaning of a word or expression :

The name of the cheese is Dolcelatte, literally meaning ‘sweet milk’.

I said I felt like quitting, but I didn’t mean it literally (= I did not mean exactly what I said ) !

2 take somebody/something literally to believe exactly what someone or something says rather than trying to understand their general meaning :

She takes the Bible literally.

3 used to emphasize that something, especially a large number, is actually true :

The Olympic Games were watched by literally billions of people.

4 spoken used to emphasize a strong expression or word that is not being used in its real or original meaning. Some people consider this use to be incorrect :

Dad was literally blazing with anger.