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We need a word for "literally" that doesn't also mean "not literally" (discuss.tchncs.de)
submitted 5 months ago by to c/showerthoughts@lemmy.world
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Since it's widely accepted that the word "literally" can be used to add emphasis, we need another word that can be used when you want to make it clear that you really mean "literally" in the original sense.

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[–] 3 points 5 months ago (7 children)

Obviously, you use the word that expresses what you intend to express. The question is what that word would be when you want to express "literally" in the strict dictionary definition sense without ambiguity.

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  • [–] 1 point 5 months ago (5 children)

    Give me an example where using the word literally makes the sentence clearer. For the most part using the word literally is entirely unnecessary, and provides no value.

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  • [–] 1 point 5 months ago (3 children)

    I don't understand where this question is coming from. The premise of this question is that "literally" is ambiguous. That its meaning is unclear. How does an ambiguous word add clarity to a sentence?

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  • [–] 1 point 5 months ago (2 children)

    There was a time when Literally was the word we used to eliminate ambiguity. Using it to mean the opposite of its originally intended, and accepted, definition injects ambiguity, the very thing the word is supposed to prevent.

    That's literally an example of IRONY (another often wrongly used word).

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  • [–] 0 points 5 months ago (1 child)

    OP is asking how to solve a problem. You understand that repeating the problem does not answer the question, right?

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  • [–] 1 point 5 months ago*

    That's not what I was doing. I was illustrating that this controversy about Literally is particularly IRONIC, another grammar word that is often used incorrectly.

    And you didn't understand that, so your assignment for tomorrow is a 1000 word essay on whether your misunderstanding of my post constitutes irony itself, or if it is another example of false irony, such as the Alanis Morissette song.

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