The Oxford Thesaurus An A-Z Dictionary of Synonyms INTRO ...

sane, hard-headed, business-like, no-nonsense, unromantic,
unsentimental, tough, tough-minded, Colloq hard-nosed,
hard-boiled: Kevin's realistic grasp of the problems may make
the company profitable at last. 2 natural, lifelike, true to
life, naturalistic, vivid, genuine, real, graphic: This
painting is so realistic that it looks like a photograph.
Harriet's description was so realistic that I felt I had
actually been to Benidorm.
reality n. 1 actuality, fact, truth, genuineness, authenticity,
Aristotelianism entelechy: It is important to deal with the
reality not the potentiality of the situation. 2 in reality. See
really, below.
realization
n. 1 conception, understanding, comprehension, apprehension,
awareness, appreciation, perception, recognition, cognizance:
Full realization of what he had done finally dawned on him. 2
actualization, consummation, accomplishment, achievement,
establishment, fulfilment, materialization, effectuation: The
realization of the dream of a united Europe seems possible in
the last decade of the 20th century.
realize v. 1 make real, effect, bring about, make happen, make a
reality, actualize, accomplish, produce, achieve, fulfil,
materialize, effectuate: Many of Leonardo da Vinci's inventions
were not realized in his lifetime. 2 understand, appreciate,
comprehend, be aware of, conceive of, grasp, perceive, discern,
be or become conscious or aware or appreciative of, recognize,
see, Colloq catch on (to), cotton (on) to, Brit twig: Did Clare
fully realize the consequences of her actions? 3 return, gain,
clear, profit, make, earn, bring or take in, net, produce, get:
We have realized a substantial profit on the sale of the shares
bought when the company was privatized.
really adv. 1 genuinely, actually, truly, honestly, in reality, in
actuality, in (point of) fact, as a matter of fact, surely,
indeed, absolutely, definitely: Is he really going to do the
high-wire act without a net? 2 indeed, actually, absolutely,
unqualifiedly, positively, categorically, unquestionably,
definitely, undeniably: She is really the musical one in the
family. 3 in effect, in reality, actually, in fact, de facto,
in the end, at bottom, in the final analysis, at the end of the