Misuse of "Literally"

[sbrooks103x]

One of my pet peeves is people who misuse literally.

They say I "literally" did something, when there is no way to figuratively do it!

Or, "I was so angry I picked up the ball and literally through it a mile."

 

[Hypoxia]

The word shifts meaning from the literal to the figurative, much as 'millions' or '666' stand for any large number. 'Literally' in narrative should be real. 'Literally' in conversation is just hyperbole, a depiction of the speech's flavor. People lie, fumble, and fuck up when they speak. That's part of the fun.

 

[TxRad]

Maybe you should have a pet peeve for through and threw.

 

[CyranoJ]

I literally kill and chop up the bodies of people who do this, and feed their remains into an incinerator, and then go home and make a salad with the same knife I used to end their miserable, worthless lives.

...

Uh, whoops. I guess I must've misused "literally" there! Ha-ha! Life comes at you fast!

 

[sr71plt]

I laughed. Chris posted over on the Political forum today that he literally had a doctorate and I laughed then too.

 

[PuckIt]

One of my pet peeves is people who misuse literally.

They say I "literally" did something, when there is no way to figuratively do it!

Or, "I was so angry I picked up the ball and literally through it a mile."

*facepalm*

Seriously? You read this exact sentence somewhere and the "misuse of literal" was just the first thing that jumped out at you.

Thanks. Now I literally need a brain enema.

 

[jomar]

Yeah, pet peeves and blinders.

 

[Hypoxia]

Be sure to distinguish between 'literal' and 'littoral'. "She litorally spread her legs" can conjure uneasy images.

 

[oggbashan]

The use of literal as hyperbole is now accepted.

It's a battle that was lost long ago as word use evolves.

 

[sbrooks103x]

Maybe you should have a pet peeve for through and threw.

Oops, my bad, LOL!

 

[sbrooks103x]

*facepalm*

Seriously? You read this exact sentence somewhere and the "misuse of literal" was just the first thing that jumped out at you.

Thanks. Now I literally need a brain enema.

No, that was me having a brain cramp when making up an example.

 

[PuckIt]

No, that was me having a brain cramp when making up an example.

Ah! Okey doke. I get those a lot too. Although I call them "brain farts".

And then there's the much more disturbing "brain leakage". Similar to the leakage from the other end they warn you about with 85% of the medications these days...

 

[sbrooks103x]

Ah! Okey doke. I get those a lot too. Although I call them "brain farts".

And then there's the much more disturbing "brain leakage". Similar to the leakage from the other end they warn you about with 85% of the medications these days...

Yes, I also use "brain farts," was in a polite mood!

 

[Bramblethorn]

The use of literal as hyperbole is now accepted.

It's a battle that was lost long ago as word use evolves.

A good discussion on this at Merriam-Webster: https://www.merriam-webster.com/words-at-play/misuse-of-literally

M-W notes examples of this usage by Thackeray, Charlotte Brontë, F. Scott Fitzgerald, and Dickens, and observes that all major dictionaries recognise the use.

I'll admit that it still irks me, but at this point that's my problem to deal with and not the author's.

 

[R. Richard]

What TXRad said.

 

[HandsInTheDark]

A good discussion on this at Merriam-Webster: https://www.merriam-webster.com/words-at-play/misuse-of-literally

M-W notes examples of this usage by Thackeray, Charlotte Brontë, F. Scott Fitzgerald, and Dickens, and observes that all major dictionaries recognise the use.

I don't care. Even as someone who's been known to resort to dictionaries to end arguments, and despite the fact that the misuse dates to the 1700's, it's still wrong. Citing that authors bend words to their dark intentions is a bit like saying politicians spin facts - of course they do, but that doesn't make it right. The fact that people commonly misuse words is a valid reason for the misuse to be enshrined in a dictionary, but it's still a shrine to a false god. Literal is, and remains, the opposite of figurative; they are not synonyms. And everyone has my permission to dope-slap people caught using it wrong. Figurative slaps simply will not do. Get literal on their asses.

 

[sr71plt]

The fact that people commonly misuse words is a valid reason for the misuse to be enshrined in a dictionary, but it's still a shrine to a false god. Literal is, and remains, the opposite of figurative; they are not synonyms. And everyone has my permission to dope-slap people caught using it wrong. Figurative slaps simply will not do. Get literal on their asses.

This is an argument for using it in dialogue, though. It's in common use.

 

[Bramblethorn]

I don't care. Even as someone who's been known to resort to dictionaries to end arguments, and despite the fact that the misuse dates to the 1700's, it's still wrong. Citing that authors bend words to their dark intentions is a bit like saying politicians spin facts - of course they do, but that doesn't make it right. The fact that people commonly misuse words is a valid reason for the misuse to be enshrined in a dictionary, but it's still a shrine to a false god. Literal is, and remains, the opposite of figurative; they are not synonyms. And everyone has my permission to dope-slap people caught using it wrong. Figurative slaps simply will not do. Get literal on their asses.

How do you feel about "cleave", "let", "sanction", "oversight", and all the other auto-antonyms in English?

 

[oggbashan]

The word that still jars with me after decades of its new use is:

Gay

I have books and sheet music that use gay in its original sense but when I look at them now I wince because the new meaning makes the old one seem over pretentious. Often it was. "Gay young things" was a term of disapproval indicating that the speaker thinks the young things should get real lives.

"Having a gay time" was sometimes people reverting to arch childish behaviour.

I accept that the modern version of gay is a useful word but I find a real disconnect between its use now, and the historic use.

But that's just ancient Og's personal view.

 

[CyranoJ]

It is rather queer, innit. The new use of the word gay. The spectacle of its transformation has been simply awful. I blame the nice people, who are hardly silly anymore.

 

[sbrooks103x]

How do you feel about "cleave", "let", "sanction", "oversight", and all the other auto-antonyms in English?

To the best of my admittedly limited knowledge, the multiple meanings of those words have existed and been accepted for decades if not centuries. The alternate meaning of "literally" is at best grudgingly accepted as common usage.

I think that MOST people would still be taken aback if they heard, "I was so mad I literally hit the roof!"

 

[Hypoxia]

We use many unrealistic figures of speech. "My brain is fried!" Not in lard, hopefully. "I'm beat to death." Oh, a talking corpse! Hey, it's only colorful language. Get a grip.

 

[sr71plt]

So, what you're saying is that writers are overdoing it if they wallow in thinking literally(?)

 

[sbrooks103x]

We use many unrealistic figures of speech. "My brain is fried!" Not in lard, hopefully. "I'm beat to death." Oh, a talking corpse! Hey, it's only colorful language. Get a grip.

Yes, but we wouldn't say, "My brain is literally fried," or "I'm literally beat to death!"

 

[sr71plt]

Yes, but we wouldn't say, "My brain is literally fried," or "I'm literally beat to death!"

Folks do all of the time. Which means there's no reason why they wouldn't say it in realistic dialogue in stories. In practice, it sometimes means "really."