Yikes, do you need a band-aid?
"I'm literally gonna throw everyone in the car and go."
That's no way to treat your friends!
Some of you may know about my wrath against misuse of literally. It sparked the longest string of facebook status commenting I have ever experienced.
Here's what Merriam-Webster's says:
lit·er·al·ly
Pronunciation: \ˈli-tə-rə-lē, ˈli-trə-lē, ˈli-tər-lē\
Function: adverb
Date: 1533
1 : in a literal sense or manner : actually (took the remark literally; was literally insane)
2 : in effect : virtually (will literally turn the world upside down to combat cruelty or injustice — Norman Cousins)
Usage Since some people take sense 2 to be the opposite of sense 1, it has been frequently criticized as a misuse. Instead, the use is pure hyperbole intended to gain emphasis, but it often appears in contexts where no additional emphasis is necessary.
The usage section points out people like me who are a little cranky about definition 2. It's not that I don't accept the figurative, hyperbolic use of the word ever. It's just that many people don't understand that they're using literally figuratively; they're not using it that way intentionally because they're ignorant of definition 1. Others who using intentionally as a hyperbole overuse it, and it becomes a lazy way to try and make a point—and this overuse limits its point-making power.
Wow, I sound like Granny Grammar. I just needed to explain my ire at this linguistic misstep. Now I feel better, and you know how to keep me from mocking you.
2 comments:
just wanted to say that i miss you! :o) hope your holidays were happy!
Here is a cringe-worthy example for you. The first congressperson (just elected) that was born in the 80s, Aaron Schock, said this about his new job:
"The last couple of months have been literally like drinking out of a fire hose."
Yikes! That is some crazy new Congress initiation scheme!
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