1. to interpret or represent something in a literal or strictly factual manner; to take something literally
Usage: British spelling (American: literalizes); third-person singular present tense
2. to convert abstract or figurative language into concrete or literal form
Usage: British spelling (American: literalizes); third-person singular present tense

Examples

• The director literalises the poet's metaphors by staging them as actual events on screen.
• She literalises every figure of speech, missing the intended humor entirely.
• The artist literalises the dream sequence, transforming surreal imagery into recognizable objects.
• When you literalise an idiom, you often lose its true meaning.
• The adaptation literalises the novel's symbolic elements, making them explicit rather than implied.