1. adhering strictly to the exact meaning of words or text without considering context, metaphor, or interpretation

Examples

• His literalistic reading of the poem missed its deeper symbolic meaning.
• The judge took a literalistic approach to interpreting the law.
• She gave a literalistic translation that lost the original’s poetic beauty.
• The student’s literalistic understanding of the metaphor confused the class.
• Critics argued that his literalistic interpretation was too rigid.
• The literalistic approach to the ancient text ignored historical context.