Actually in Different Languages
Discover 'Actually' in 134 Languages: Dive into Translations, Hear Pronunciations, and Uncover Cultural Insights.
Updated on March 6, 2024
The word 'actually' is a small word with a big impact. It's often used to introduce a surprising fact or to emphasize that something is true or real. In English, 'actually' is a common word used in everyday conversation, but have you ever wondered how it translates into other languages?
Understanding the translation of 'actually' in different languages can provide insight into cultural nuances and differences. For example, in Spanish, 'actualmente' not only means 'actually' but also 'currently' or 'at the present time.' Meanwhile, in German, 'tatsächlich' can also mean 'in fact' or 'really.'
Moreover, the word 'actually' has a rich history. It originated from the Latin word 'actu' which means 'in action' or 'in act.' Over time, it evolved into the Middle English word 'actual' and eventually became the modern English word 'actually' that we know today.
So, why should you care about the translation of 'actually' in different languages? Knowing how to express 'actually' in other languages can enhance your communication skills and deepen your cultural understanding. Plus, it's just plain interesting to learn how different languages express the same concept in unique ways.
Without further ado, here are the translations of 'actually' in different languages:
Actually
Actually in Sub-Saharan African Languages
| Afrikaans | eintlik | ||
| The word "eintlik" can also mean "essentially" or "in fact". | |||
| Amharic | በእውነቱ | ||
| In Amharic, the word "በእውነቱ" primarily means "in fact" or "indeed" rather than "actually". | |||
| Hausa | a zahiri | ||
| In the Zarma language, it means "the one who holds the power". | |||
| Igbo | n'ezie | ||
| N'ezie derives from the Igbo word nē, meaning "know". | |||
| Malagasy | raha ny marina | ||
| Raha ny marina derives from the Malagasy phrase "raha ny marin-toetra", which means "that which is true or correct". | |||
| Nyanja (Chichewa) | kwenikweni | ||
| The word "kwenikweni" can also mean "in reality" or "the truth of the matter." | |||
| Shona | chaizvo | ||
| In its alternative meaning, "chaizvo" denotes an expression of certainty or doubt, similar to "of course" or "sure" in English. | |||
| Somali | runti | ||
| The word "runti" in Somali can mean "actually" or "in fact". | |||
| Sesotho | ha e le hantle | ||
| The Sesotho phrase "ha e le hantle" can also be used to express surprise or disbelief, and translates literally to "isn't it good?" | |||
| Swahili | kweli | ||
| The word "kweli" can also mean "true" or "correct". | |||
| Xhosa | ngokwenene | ||
| The Xhosa word 'ngokwenene' has an alternate meaning of 'of course' or 'that is true'. | |||
| Yoruba | kosi | ||
| It derives from 'ko,' meaning 'not,' and 'so,' meaning 'possible,' forming an emphatic affirmation. | |||
| Zulu | empeleni | ||
| "Empeleni" can also mean "on the other hand" or "however" in Zulu. | |||
| Bambara | bari | ||
| Ewe | li fifia | ||
| Kinyarwanda | mubyukuri | ||
| Lingala | na koloba solo | ||
| Luganda | mazima | ||
| Sepedi | nnetenete | ||
| Twi (Akan) | nokorɛ | ||
Actually in North African & Middle Eastern Languages
| Arabic | فعلا | ||
| The Arabic word "فعلا" can also mean "in reality" or "indeed". | |||
| Hebrew | בעצם | ||
| The word בעצם is an abbreviation for בעצם הדברים meaning "in the main point". | |||
| Pashto | په حقیقت کې | ||
| The word "په حقیقت کې" is derived from the Arabic word "الحقيقة" meaning "the truth" and the Pashto word "کې" meaning "in". It can also mean "in reality" or "in fact". | |||
| Arabic | فعلا | ||
| The Arabic word "فعلا" can also mean "in reality" or "indeed". | |||
Actually in Western European Languages
| Albanian | në të vërtetë | ||
| Basque | benetan | ||
| The word "benetan" is etymologically related to the word "beneta", which means "true" or "real". | |||
| Catalan | en realitat | ||
| The Catalan phrase "en realitat" is derived from the Latin "in realitate" and can also mean "in fact" or "indeed". | |||
| Croatian | zapravo | ||
| The word 'zapravo' originates from the Proto-Slavic verb 'praviti' ('to do') and the preposition 'za-' ('behind'), giving the literal meaning of 'to do behind' or 'to do secretly'. | |||
| Danish | rent faktisk | ||
| "Faktisk" is related to "fact", but in Danish it can also mean "precisely", whereas the Norwegian "faktisk" always means "actually". | |||
| Dutch | werkelijk | ||
| The Old Dutch word "warekliken" means "being true" and is related to the English "verily." | |||
| English | actually | ||
| "Actually" comes from the Latin word "agere" which means "to act" or "to set in motion." | |||
| French | réellement | ||
| The word "réellement" derives from the Latin "res" meaning "thing" or "fact". | |||
| Frisian | feitlik | ||
| The word "feitlik" in Frisian is derived from the Old Frisian word "feit", meaning "fact" or "reality". It is also used to express certainty or emphasis in a statement. | |||
| Galician | en realidade | ||
| The second part of the word "en realidade" derives from the Latin word "realitas" (reality). | |||
| German | tatsächlich | ||
| "Tatsächlich" is formed as "die Tat" (the act, action) + "-sache" (meaning: matter, substance, fact, thing, state of affairs): thus it literally means "the state related to that act."} | |||
| Icelandic | reyndar | ||
| The word "reyndar" is a conjunction meaning "indeed" or "in fact", and is also used as an adverb meaning "actually" or "really." | |||
| Irish | i ndáiríre | ||
| In earlier times, 'i ndáiríre' meant 'in verity', and was often used in legal documents. | |||
| Italian | in realtà | ||
| The Italian phrase "in realtà" is derived from the Latin phrase "in realitate", meaning "in reality" or "in fact." | |||
| Luxembourgish | eigentlech | ||
| The word "eigentlech" derives from the German word "eigentlich", which means "in reality", "in essence", or "fundamentally". | |||
| Maltese | fil-fatt | ||
| The Maltese word "fil-fatt" comes from the Arabic phrase "fi al-fa'l", meaning "in action" or "in the act." | |||
| Norwegian | faktisk | ||
| Faktisk' in Norwegian is derived from the old Norse word 'fakr' meaning crime or evil, and can also mean 'crime' or 'wrongdoing' in a legal context. | |||
| Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) | na realidade | ||
| In Portuguese, "na realidade" can also mean "in fact", "truly", or "the real thing." | |||
| Scots Gaelic | gu dearbh | ||
| The phrase "gu dearbh" can also mean "in fact," "of course," or "indeed." | |||
| Spanish | realmente | ||
| The adverb 'realmente' originates from the Latin phrase 'res ipsa loquitur', meaning 'the thing speaks for itself'. | |||
| Swedish | faktiskt | ||
| Faktiskt is derived from the Middle Low German word fakt(i)sk 'thoroughly'. In Danish, it means 'in fact' or 'really'. | |||
| Welsh | mewn gwirionedd | ||
| The phrase 'mewn gwirionedd' was originally written as two words and meant 'in the truth' or 'in reality'. | |||
Actually in Eastern European Languages
| Belarusian | на самай справе | ||
| The phrase "на самай справе" (actually) can also be used as a euphemism for "of course" or "definitely." | |||
| Bosnian | zapravo | ||
| The word 'zapravo' is derived from 'pravo', meaning 'law', 'justice', or 'right', and was originally used to indicate a just or fair judgment. | |||
| Bulgarian | всъщност | ||
| The Bulgarian word "всъщност" ultimately derives from the Proto-Slavic word "*vsъ", meaning "all" or "in all respects." | |||
| Czech | vlastně | ||
| The Czech word "vlastně" can also mean "in fact", "indeed", or "as a matter of fact". | |||
| Estonian | tegelikult | ||
| Tegelikult can also mean "in fact" or "as a matter of fact" in Estonian. | |||
| Finnish | itse asiassa | ||
| Itse asiassa is an adverb in Finnish which literally means "itself as such". | |||
| Hungarian | tulajdonképpen | ||
| "Tulajdonképpen" means 'actually' or 'essentially' and is derived from 'tulajdon', meaning 'property' or 'ownership'. | |||
| Latvian | faktiski | ||
| The term 'faktiski' originates from the Polish 'faktyczny', meaning 'actual', 'genuine', or 'real'. | |||
| Lithuanian | iš tikrųjų | ||
| The word "iš tikrųjų" is composed of three parts: "iš" (from, out of), "tikr" (true), and "oji" (the feminine form of the suffix "-as"), which together mean "from the true (feminine)" and imply authenticity or genuineness. | |||
| Macedonian | всушност | ||
| Всушност is a borrowing of the Romanian adverb 'de fapt', originally meaning 'in fact' or 'indeed'. | |||
| Polish | tak właściwie | ||
| "Tak właściwie" can also be translated as "that's a good point" or "that's true". | |||
| Romanian | de fapt | ||
| Romanian "de fapt" can also mean "in fact" or "really." | |||
| Russian | фактически | ||
| The word фактически can also mean "in fact", "de facto", or "virtually" in Russian. | |||
| Serbian | заправо | ||
| "Заправо" also means "to refuel" and "to charge (an account)". | |||
| Slovak | vlastne | ||
| The Slovak word "vlastne" has multiple meanings including 'actually,' 'truly,' 'properly,' 'indeed,' and 'in fact.' | |||
| Slovenian | pravzaprav | ||
| The word "pravzaprav" can also mean "in fact" or "as a matter of fact" in Slovenian. | |||
| Ukrainian | насправді | ||
| In Ukrainian, the word “насправді” can also mean “in reality” or “in fact”. | |||
Actually in South Asian Languages
| Bengali | আসলে | ||
| আসলে (actually) is an adverb in Bengali that can also mean "in reality," "in truth," or "indeed." | |||
| Gujarati | ખરેખર | ||
| "ખરેખર" also means "truly", "really", or "indeed". | |||
| Hindi | वास्तव में | ||
| "वास्तव में" means "in reality" or "as a matter of fact" in Hindi. | |||
| Kannada | ವಾಸ್ತವವಾಗಿ | ||
| The word 'ವಾಸ್ತವವಾಗಿ' ('actually') is derived from the Sanskrit word 'वास्तव' ('real') and is also used in the sense of 'truly' or 'in reality'. | |||
| Malayalam | യഥാർത്ഥത്തിൽ | ||
| Marathi | प्रत्यक्षात | ||
| The Marathi word "प्रत्यक्षात" comes from the Sanskrit word "प्रत्यक्षः" which means "direct perception" or "experience." | |||
| Nepali | वास्तवमा | ||
| वास्तवमा (vastavma) is a loanword from Hindi, ultimately derived from Sanskrit, where वास्तव (vastav) means “real” or “true” | |||
| Punjabi | ਅਸਲ ਵਿੱਚ | ||
| Sinhala (Sinhalese) | ඇත්ත වශයෙන්ම | ||
| Tamil | உண்மையில் | ||
| "உண்மையில்" originally meant "in truth" in Tamil, but its alternate meaning of "actually" arose later. | |||
| Telugu | నిజానికి | ||
| The word "నిజానికి" (nijaaniki) in Telugu can also mean "in reality" or "as a matter of fact". | |||
| Urdu | اصل میں | ||
Actually in East Asian Languages
| Chinese (Simplified) | 其实 | ||
| "其实", 汉字, 语源出自 "寔" 字. "寔", 甲骨文为祭器, 引申义为真实. | |||
| Chinese (Traditional) | 其實 | ||
| "其實" (shí qí) can also mean "the fact is," "in truth," or "as a matter of fact." | |||
| Japanese | 実際に | ||
| The word "実際に" is primarily defined as "actually" and is used to indicate a fact or reality. | |||
| Korean | 사실은 | ||
| "사실은" literally means "fact is" but it is often used to emphasize the truthfulness of a statement or to correct a previous statement. | |||
| Mongolian | үнэндээ | ||
| үнэндээ is also used to imply that the speaker was previously wrong about something. | |||
| Myanmar (Burmese) | တကယ်တော့ | ||
Actually in South East Asian Languages
| Indonesian | sebenarnya | ||
| The word 'sebenarnya' also means 'truly', 'genuinely', or 'in reality', adding emphasis to a statement. | |||
| Javanese | sejatine | ||
| The word "sejatine" in Javanese originates from the word "saja", which means "only", and the suffix "-tine", which indicates a condition or state. | |||
| Khmer | ពិត | ||
| The word ពិត "actually" also carries the meaning of "true" or "genuine" in Khmer. | |||
| Lao | ຕົວຈິງແລ້ວ | ||
| Malay | sebenarnya | ||
| Sebab + benar + nya; literally: truth's sake; truly; in fact; actually | |||
| Thai | จริง | ||
| The word "จริง" in Thai can also mean "true", "correct", or "genuine". | |||
| Vietnamese | thực ra | ||
| "Thực ra" literally means "to be real" but also used to express the speaker's emphasis or surprise. | |||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | sa totoo lang | ||
Actually in Central Asian Languages
| Azerbaijani | əslində | ||
| The word "əslində" has alternate meanings in Azerbaijani such as "in fact", "in truth", or "in reality". | |||
| Kazakh | шын мәнінде | ||
| Originally "шын мәнінде" means "in true meaning", "literally", and "not in vain". | |||
| Kyrgyz | чындыгында | ||
| "Чындыгында" can also mean "in fact", "indeed", "in reality", "the truth is", and "as a matter of fact". | |||
| Tajik | дар асл | ||
| The Tajik word дар асл (actually) is composed of two Persian roots: дар (in, on, at) and асл (root, origin, base). | |||
| Turkmen | aslynda | ||
| Uzbek | aslida | ||
| The word "aslida" in Uzbek also means "in fact" or "in reality". | |||
| Uyghur | ئەمەلىيەتتە | ||
Actually in Pacific Languages
| Hawaiian | ʻoiaʻiʻo | ||
| ʻOiaʻiʻo can also mean 'really' or 'truly', and is often used to emphasize a statement or feeling. | |||
| Maori | mau | ||
| The word "mau" also has the connotation of "again" or "repeatedly" in the Māori language. | |||
| Samoan | moni | ||
| The word "moni" in Samoan can also mean "money" or "wealth". | |||
| Tagalog (Filipino) | talaga | ||
| Talaga, meaning "actually," derives from Spanish "tal," which similarly denotes certainty. | |||
Actually in American Indigenous Languages
| Aymara | chiqansa | ||
| Guarani | añetehápe | ||
Actually in International Languages
| Esperanto | efektive | ||
| Esperanto "efektive" comes from an archaic Polish or German loanword and means both "in fact" and "in effect" or "actually" or "effectively" in English. | |||
| Latin | actually | ||
| The Latin adverb "actu" means "now," hence the "actual" thing or event is the one that happens at the present moment. | |||
Actually in Others Languages
| Greek | πράγματι | ||
| "Πράγματι" derives from the ancient Greek word "πρᾶγμα" (thing) and originally meant "in reality/deed/fact". | |||
| Hmong | ua tau | ||
| "Ua tau" can also mean "finally" or "at last". | |||
| Kurdish | birastî | ||
| Birastî's root (rêst) carries connotations of peace, rest, truth, justice, and correctness. | |||
| Turkish | aslında | ||
| In Turkish, "aslında" can also mean "in fact" or "in reality". | |||
| Xhosa | ngokwenene | ||
| The Xhosa word 'ngokwenene' has an alternate meaning of 'of course' or 'that is true'. | |||
| Yiddish | פאקטיש | ||
| The word פּאַקטיש (pakttish) is a loanword from Russian that means "actual," but has alternate meanings like "factual" and "positive," among others. | |||
| Zulu | empeleni | ||
| "Empeleni" can also mean "on the other hand" or "however" in Zulu. | |||
| Assamese | আচলতে | ||
| Aymara | chiqansa | ||
| Bhojpuri | असल में | ||
| Dhivehi | އަސްލުގައި | ||
| Dogri | असल च | ||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | sa totoo lang | ||
| Guarani | añetehápe | ||
| Ilocano | alla ket | ||
| Krio | rili | ||
| Kurdish (Sorani) | لە ڕاستیدا | ||
| Maithili | वस्तुतः | ||
| Meiteilon (Manipuri) | ꯇꯁꯦꯡꯕ | ||
| Mizo | anihna takah chuan | ||
| Oromo | dhugaa dubbachuuf taanaan | ||
| Odia (Oriya) | ପ୍ରକୃତରେ | ||
| Quechua | kunanpuni | ||
| Sanskrit | यथार्थतः | ||
| Tatar | чынлыкта | ||
| Tigrinya | ብሓቂ | ||
| Tsonga | entiyisweni | ||