actual

Etymology

From Middle English actual, actuel (“active”), from Anglo-Norman actuel, actual, and its source Late Latin actuālis (“active, practical”), from Latin actus (“act, action, performance”), from agere (“to do; to act”) + -alis (“-al”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *h₂éǵeti, from the root *h₂eǵ-.

adj

1. (chiefly theology) relating to a person's acts or deeds; active, practical
   Let your holy and pious intention be actual; that is […] by a special prayer or action, […] given to God. 1650, Jeremy Taylor, The Rule and Exercises of Holy Living
   Apparently, the holy Doctor was referring to actual, rather than original, sin; yet the basis of his argument for Mary's holiness, the divine maternity, would logically lead to the conclusion that she was free from original sin also. 1946, The American Ecclesiastical Review, volume 114
2. Existing in reality, not just potentially; really acted or acting; occurring in fact.
   The original family who had begun to build a palace to rival Nonesuch had died out before they had put up little more than the gateway, so that the actual structure which had come down to posterity retained the secret magic of a promise rather than the overpowering splendour of a great architectural achievement. 1963, Margery Allingham, chapter 1, in The China Governess
   They also exposed the blatant discrepancy between the west's professed values and actual foreign policies. 2013-06-07, Gary Younge, “Hypocrisy lies at heart of Manning prosecution”, in The Guardian Weekly, volume 188, number 26, page 18
   the actual cost of goods; the actual case under discussion
   The actual government expenses dramatically exceed the budget.
3. (now rare) in action at the time being; now existing; current.
   If this be your actual situation, compared to the situation to which you were called, as it were by the voice of God and man, I cannot find it in my heart to congratulate you on the choice you have made, or the success which has attended your endeavours. 1790, Edmund Burke, Reflections on the revolution in France
   To my actual feelings it seems incredible that I could ever believe that I believed in Transubstantiation! c. 1793, Edward Gibbon, Memoirs of My Life, Penguin, published 1990, page 85
4. Used as intensifier to emphasise a following noun; exact, specific, very.
   [H]ow the neurons are organised in these lobes and ganglia remains obscure. Yet this is the level of organisation that does the actual thinking—and is, presumably, the seat of consciousness. 2013-08-03, “The machine of a new soul”, in The Economist, volume 408, number 8847

noun

1. an actual, real one; notably:
   1. (finance) something actually received; real receipts, as distinct from estimated ones.
   2. (military) a radio callsign modifier that specifies the commanding officer of the unit or asset denoted by the remainder of the callsign and not the officer's assistant or other designee.
      Bravo Six Actual, this is Charlie One. Come in, over. (The radio operator is requesting to speak to the commander of the unit under the call sign "Bravo Six", as opposed to any available member of the unit.)
2. (uncountable) Reality, usually with the definite article.