How to Use actual in a Sentence

actual

adjective
  • They signed the agreement in the spring, but the actual sale wasn't made until that summer.
  • The actual cost of the repair was much higher than the estimate.
  • You deposit money in a bank account but the actual money is not held there.
  • The actual process took a hell of a lot of work.
    — David Kamp, New Yorker, 4 Oct. 2025
  • But no one talks about their actual state of mind.
    — Georg Szalai, HollywoodReporter, 8 May 2026
  • One is the actual size of the deficit.
    — Priyanka Salve, CNBC, 29 Aug. 2025
  • Let kids browse through actual recipe books or cards.
    — Melissa Willets, Parents, 1 Nov. 2025
  • And then there was the actual facelift.
    — Elizabeth Siegel, Allure, 20 Mar. 2026
  • How’s the actual beach stuff—sand and surf?
    — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 26 Jan. 2026
  • How’s the actual beach stuff—sand and surf?
    — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 21 Mar. 2026
  • But then the actual song starts.
    — Jackson Howard, Pitchfork, 29 Mar. 2026
  • Erin showed up to this, was game, and seemed to have an actual good time.
    — Brian Moylan, Vulture, 12 Nov. 2024
  • What was your first actual job?
    — Perrie Samotin, Glamour, 1 Mar. 2026
  • Its legacy as an actual film is much less clear.
    — Christian Zilko, IndieWire, 25 Jan. 2026
  • No longer is her age measured in weeks or months, but actual years.
    — Rebecca Cope, Vogue, 26 Nov. 2023
  • Never mind that there wasn’t an actual lemon to be found in this cake.
    — Carolynn Carreño, Los Angeles Times, 15 Feb. 2026
  • The actual amount of time that takes depends on the parish.
    — Chad Murphy, Cincinnati Enquirer, 9 Feb. 2026
  • Plus, the actual pattern of the rug helps to hide any stains, too.
    — Audrey Lee, Architectural Digest, 16 Apr. 2026
  • And then how did the actual license come about?
    — Marah Eakin, Vulture, 9 Feb. 2026
  • There's no actual recipe for peanuts and candy corn fall mix, per se.
    — Emily Vanschmus, Better Homes & Gardens, 28 Sep. 2023
  • There are actual green onions, peppers, and lots of sausage in there.
    — Alex Beggs, Bon Appetit Magazine, 25 Apr. 2026
  • Now that concept is an actual game for kids 5 years old and up.
    — Ashley Ziegler, Parents, 6 Oct. 2023
  • The actual thing the founder built rarely matters.
    — Harshit Dwivedi, Forbes.com, 22 May 2026
  • The thing to be most focused on is the actual act of writing.
    — Literary Hub, 23 Apr. 2026
  • Their marathon gigs are like the best parts of an actual Neil show, stretched out to hours.
    — Rob Sheffield, Rolling Stone, 25 June 2026
  • The actual fight time for the main event depends on how long other fights go.
    — oregonlive, 9 Oct. 2021
  • The Curse began with an actual curse, or at least the threat of one.
    — Seth Abramovitch, The Hollywood Reporter, 24 Apr. 2024
  • The reason is that none of those three things is the actual constraint.
    — Steve Taplin, Forbes.com, 20 May 2026
  • The twists of a chignon don’t have to be limited to the actual knot at the back.
    — Shelby Wax, Vogue, 7 Feb. 2026
  • This means both the spring and the frame are beneath the actual jumping area.
    — Bestreviews, Chicago Tribune, 4 June 2025

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'actual.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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