reality

[ree-al-i-tee]

noun

plural

realities 

1. the state or quality of being real.

2. resemblance to what is real.

3. a real thing or fact.

4. real things, facts, or events taken as a whole; state of affairs.

   the reality of the business world; vacationing to escape reality.

5. Philosophy.

   1. something that exists independently of ideas concerning it.

   2. something that exists independently of all other things and from which all other things derive.

6. something that is real.

7. something that constitutes a real or actual thing, as distinguished from something that is merely apparent.

adjective

1. noting or pertaining to a TV program or film that portrays nonactors interacting or competing with each other in real but contrived situations, allegedly without a script.

   a popular reality show; reality TV.

reality

/ rɪˈælɪtɪ /

noun

1. the state of things as they are or appear to be, rather than as one might wish them to be

2. something that is real

3. the state of being real

4. philosophy

   1. that which exists, independent of human awareness

   2. the totality of facts as they are independent of human awareness of them See also conceptualism Compare appearance

5. actually; in fact

Other Word Forms

• antireality adjective
• nonreality noun
• proreality noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of reality¹

From the Medieval Latin word reālitās, dating back to 1540–50. See real ¹, -ity

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. in reality, in fact or truth; actually.

   brave in appearance, but in reality a coward.

Example Sentences

Though it may be easier to turn from the darkest realities of our times, the danger remains whether we’re willing to see it or not.

From Salon

Realistically, my husband and I would probably end the day by binge-watching bad reality TV to decompress and disassociate for a little bit — something like “Love Island.”

From Los Angeles Times

"If the tariffs are meant to weaken Brazil, in reality, it is pushing sellers closer to China," said Mr Portes, who trades raw coffee beans around the world.

From BBC

We had a sense, at least through Kelly Kapoor and her pop culture references, that “The Office” took place in our shared reality, but it didn’t directly comment on real world matters.

From Los Angeles Times

“The Paper” refuses to do that, choosing instead to depict the laughable reality of newsrooms like The Truth Teller while championing the men and women doggedly working to restore its glory.

From Salon

Related Words

• existence 
• matter 
• phenomenon 
• real world 
• realism 
• sensibility 
• truth