It's true that something else is going on with 'literally' beyond simple etymological fallacy. (Which is why 'literally' is so often the target of attacks on usage.) www.merriam-webster.com/grammar/very...
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As a layman who often uses words, I'd like to note that the devotion to "literally" is that it's as if half the fire extinguishers in the world suddenly STARTED fires or were at minimum empty. "Literally" has been a protection against "figuratively" not just an antonym. Now it's a synonym?
aug 23, 2025, 6:20 pm • 7 0 • view
It's vaguely as if "For All Intensive Purposes" became the national motto (a possibility) or the latest political malapropism ("he's using it as a bully puppet") were accepted as the correct quote
aug 23, 2025, 6:37 pm • 6 0 • view
Keith's my favorite pundint.
aug 23, 2025, 6:55 pm • 0 0 • view