• UlyssesT [he/him]@hexbear.net
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    1 year ago
    language changes over time
    

    But the root of a word does not.

    This causes long struggle sessions about the word “literally” between people that want it to mean something and those that want it to be a flavoring word for figurative statements.

    • zifnab25 [he/him, any]@hexbear.net
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      1 year ago

      Note that the word “literal” still holds its original meaning. The turn of phrase is meant as exaggeration, not a change in formal definition. It has also fallen out of heavy use with more modern turns of phrase. So what “literally” means, as an adjective, is falling back into the traditional usage over time.

      • UlyssesT [he/him]@hexbear.net
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        1 year ago

        The turn of phrase is meant as exaggeration, not a change in formal definition.

        I have often seen it being used in a flexible bendy way that pretends to be the formal definition whenever it suits the poster, such as someone being called “literally insane” because someone disagreed with them. smuglord