English
actually
Actually comes from Middle English actually ‘actually, truly’, and goes back to Anglo-Norman actuel.
- Anglo-Normanc. 1066–1400actuel
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500actual‘actual’
- Middle English, derivedc. 1150–1500actually‘actually’
- Englishearliest quotation 1655same form
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Anglo-Normanc. 1066–1400actuel
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500actual‘actual’
- Middle English, derivedc. 1150–1500actually‘actually’
- Englishearliest quotation 1655same form
Earliest quotation: 1655, Thomas Fuller, The Church-history of Britain; […]: “Neither actually […] nor passively.”
Formed from actual + -ly
Proto-Indo-European *h₂eǵ- ‘to drive’
…
Latin actus ‘act, action’
Late Latin actuālis ‘active, practical’
Anglo-Norman actuel
Middle English actual
English actual
Every English word from Anglo-Norman actuel
Today it means
adv In act or in fact; really; in truth; positively.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Anglo-Norman actuel / actually