real

1、real 的芯是"东西、事情"（拉丁 rēs 义为「事物」）：跟事物本身有关 → 真的、实际的；同族 reality（现实）、realize（意识到）、realism（现实主义）都带 real。
2、别拆成 re + al 去猜意思，也别多写 l：real 只有一个 e、一个 l；副词 really 才要双写 l，这是最常考的拼写错。
3、读音是两个音节 /ˈrɪː.əl/，别压成一拍；搭配 in real life（在现实中）、real estate（房地产）、for real（来真的，口语）；和 imaginary（想象出来的）对着记。

real 真实的，实际的

来自拉丁语 realis,真实的，实际的，来自 res,事物，事实，事情。

real

real: [15] Real and its various derivatives (such as realism [19], reality [16], and realize [17]) go back ultimately to Latin rēs ‘thing’, a word of uncertain origin related to Sanskrit rās ‘riches’. It had a post-classical derivative reālis, which English originally acquired via Anglo-Norman real and used strictly in the legal sense ‘of fixed property’ (as in real estate). The broader modern range of meanings was probably instigated by the reintroduction of the word direct from Latin in the mid-16th century.
=> realize

real (adj.)

early 14c., "actually existing, true;" mid-15c., "relating to things" (especially property), from Old French reel "real, actual," from Late Latin realis "actual," in Medieval Latin "belonging to the thing itself," from Latin res "matter, thing," of uncertain origin. Meaning "genuine" is recorded from 1550s; sense of "unaffected, no-nonsense" is from 1847.

Generally, by the time you are Real, most of your hair has been loved off, and your eyes drop out and you get loose in the joints and very shabby. But these things don't matter at all, because once you are Real you can't be ugly, except to people who don't understand. [Margery Williams, "The Velveteen Rabbit"]

Real estate, the exact term, is first recorded 1660s, but in Middle English real was used in law in reference to immovable property, paired with, and distinguished from, personal. Noun phrase real time is early 19c. as a term in logic and philosophy, 1953 as an adjectival phrase; get real, usually an interjection, was U.S. college slang in 1960s, reached wide popularity c. 1987.

real (n.)

"small Spanish silver coin," 1580s, from Spanish real, noun use of real (adj.) "regal," from Latin regalis "regal" (see regal). Especially in reference to the real de plata, which circulated in the U.S. till c. 1850 and in Mexico until 1897. The same word was used in Middle English in reference to various coins, from Old French real, cognate of the Spanish word.

The old system of reckoning by shillings and pence is continued by retail dealers generally; and will continue, as long as the Spanish coins remain in circulation. [Bartlett, "Dictionary of Americanisms," 1848]

He adds that, due to different exchange rates of metal to paper money in the different states, the Spanish money had varying names from place to place. The Spanish real of one-eighth of a dollar or 12 and a half cents was a ninepence in New England, one shilling in New York, elevenpence or a levy in Pennsylvania, "and in many of the Southern States, a bit." The half-real was in New York a sixpence, in New England a fourpence, in Pennsylvania a fip, in the South a picayune.

1. Michael Fish is my favourite. He's a hoot, a real character.

我最喜欢迈克尔·菲什。他滑稽逗趣，是个实实在在的人物。

2. What we need is not manifestos of pious intentions, but real action.

我们需要的不是善意但难以实现的宣言，而是实际行动。

3. A child may not differentiate between his imagination and the real world.

儿童可能无法将自己的幻想与真实世界区分开来。

4. He was not listed under his real name on the residents panel.

他未以真名在居民名册上登记。

5. He'd put up a real fight to keep you there.

他曾努力争取让你留在那儿。

【real, authentic, genuine, true, actual, factual】
这组词都有“真的，真实的，实在的”的意思，其区别是：
real: 普通用词，含义较广，有时可与actual和genuine换用。指一切真实的或 表面看不出虚假的事物。
authentic: 常可与genuine换用，指与事实完全相符，强调准确可靠。
genuine: 普通常用词，指真正的，货真价实的，强调非人为或非虚假的。
true: 指同实际情况或标准完全一致。口语中多用。
actual: 指事物的实际存在，并非出自主观臆造。
factual: 与actual同义，但更测重根据事实，不扩大或缩小，不渲染。