Literalisms

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A strict adherence to the literal interpretation of language, often disregarding metaphorical or figurative meanings
2. The practice of understanding and using language in its most direct and explicit sense, without deviation or embellishment
3. An insistence on addressing words and phrases strictly as they are defined, rejecting any interpretative or contextual variations

Etymology: "Literalism" is a plain formation: the adjective "literal" with the suffix "-ism," which in English forms nouns naming a doctrine, practice, or habitual attitude. The adjective "literal" came into English through Old French "literal" from Late Latin "litteralis," built on Latin "littera," meaning "letter" of the alphabet. So the root idea is something written down letter by letter, and "literal" was first a word about the exact letters of a text rather than its sense. "-ism" traces back to Ancient Greek "-ismos," used to form nouns of action, state, or doctrine, which passed into Latin and then into English. The suffix attaches to a base to name a system of belief or a fixed habit of mind, so "literalism" names the habit of reading words only at face value. The plural "literalisms" simply refers to several distinct instances or varieties of this habit, such as different schools of strict reading or separate cases of it in particular texts or arguments.

Synonyms: literal interpretations, literal meanings

Antonyms: figurative interpretations, metaphors