real1

adjective

• 1actually existing as a thing or occurring in fact; not imagined or supposed:Julius Caesar was a real person a story drawing on real events her many illnesses, real and imaginary
• used to emphasize the significance or seriousness of a situation or circumstance:there is a real danger of civil war the competitive threat from overseas is very real
• Philosophy relating to something as it is, not merely as it may be described or distinguished.

• 2(of a substance or thing) not imitation or artificial; genuine:the earring was presumably real gold
• true or actual:his real name is James this isn’t my real reason for coming
• [attributive] (of a person or thing) rightly so called; proper:he’s my idea of a real man Jamie is my only real friend

• 3 [attributive] informal complete; utter (used for emphasis):the tour turned out to be a real disaster

• 4 [attributive] adjusted for changes in the value of money; assessed by purchasing power:real incomes had fallen by 30 percent an increase in real terms of 11.6 percent

• 5 Law of fixed property (i.e., land and buildings), as distinct from personal property:he lost nearly all of his real holdings

• 6 Mathematics (of a number or quantity) having no imaginary part. See imaginary.

• 7 Optics (of an image) of a kind in which the light that forms it actually passes through it; not virtual.

adverb

• really; very:my head hurts real bad