Actual describes something that is real or exists in fact, not just in theory or imagination. It can also emphasize the true amount or situation.
From Late Latin 'actualis', meaning 'active, practical', from 'actus' (a doing). It shifted from 'in action' to 'real, existing in fact'.
Actual used to be about action, not reality, but the two ideas fused: what really happens is what’s 'actual'. When people say 'the actual number', they’re pulling you away from guesses and back to what truly occurred.
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