How to Use the real thing in a Sentence

the real thing

noun
  • That, too, felt like the real thing.
    — Emily Nussbaum, New Yorker, 16 Apr. 2026
  • Yeah, potatoes fried in olive oil are the real thing.
    — General Manager, Los Angeles Times, 14 June 2026
  • Of course, nothing beats the real thing.
    — Gary Phillips, Hartford Courant, 30 Mar. 2026
  • There ain't nothing like the real thing.
    — Oliver Renick, CNBC, 12 June 2026
  • The question, of course, is whether this is all a scam or the real thing.
    — Jordan Mintzer, The Hollywood Reporter, 18 Feb. 2025
  • When fakes are passed off as the real thing, of course that would lead to murder.
    — Nina Metz, Chicago Tribune, 11 June 2025
  • Not that Machado is not the real thing.
    — Peter Lucas, Boston Herald, 16 Oct. 2025
  • The investor who wanted the real thing can no longer find it.
    — Ingmar Rentzhog, Forbes.com, 4 July 2026
  • Each pair is printed and packaged to look like the real thing.
    — L.a. Times Food Staff, Los Angeles Times, 1 Nov. 2023
  • But the workers in the theater know that this is not the real thing.
    — Baz Bamigboye, Deadline, 25 Sep. 2025
  • But images still can’t quite prepare you for the real thing.
    — Aaron Randolph, Travel + Leisure, 5 Nov. 2025
  • To my ears the cluck of his call was even more seductive than the real thing.
    — Dave Duffey, Outdoor Life, 2 Apr. 2025
  • Nothing is more rock and roll, after all, than the real thing.
    — The New Yorker, 21 Feb. 2025
  • Like, is this Root playing with me, or is this the real thing?
    — Emily Nussbaum, New Yorker, 21 June 2026
  • Some of these, like craft fur, are designed to mimic the real thing.
    — Cameron Evans, Outdoor Life, 17 Oct. 2024
  • Racing games are all very well, but there’s nothing like the real thing.
    — Angus MacKenzie, Robb Report, 7 Dec. 2023
  • Here are the amenities that signal the real thing.
    — Lauren Schuster, Miami Herald, 6 May 2026
  • And the caramel swirl clearly showcased in the ads stood out just as much in the real thing.
    — Abby Wilson, Better Homes & Gardens, 20 Sep. 2023
  • Nothing in that movie could match the real thing brought back to vivid life here in this raw black and white footage.
    — Pete Hammond, Deadline, 25 Nov. 2024
  • The best early Prime Day deals might just beat the real thing.
    — Jake Smith, Glamour, 6 Oct. 2023
  • Sometimes the real thing is just better.
    — Rebecca Jones, Southern Living, 28 Oct. 2025
  • This pink poppy display is as fresh and lively as the real thing.
    — Sarah Madaus, Architectural Digest, 25 Oct. 2024
  • And one pricey brand is taking the trend head on by offering the real thing.
    — Ramishah Maruf, CNN, 6 May 2023
  • But our dream bodies are only loose sketches of the real thing.
    — Krista Stevens, Longreads, 12 Sep. 2024
  • Here is why the liquid in the glass finally tastes like the real thing.
    — William Jones, Ascend Agency, 27 Feb. 2026
  • So the Jets joint practices were a good next step toward the real thing.
    — Pat Leonard, New York Daily News, 16 Aug. 2025
  • Modern scam and counterfeit sales sites blend in with the real thing.
    — Daniel Shapiro, Forbes.com, 29 July 2025
  • This iconic can comes filled with cherry-scented wax that smells like the real thing.
    — Francesca Krempa, StyleCaster, 11 Nov. 2025
  • Stacked up against a human, these machines might be easy to confuse with the real thing.
    — IEEE Spectrum, 30 Nov. 2023
  • It’s made from a luxe and soft silk material that drapes well and looks like the real thing.
    — Megan Schaltegger, People.com, 26 Mar. 2025

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'the real thing.' 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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