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We need a word for "literally" that doesn't also mean "not literally"
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this post was submitted on 09 May 2026
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Showerthoughts
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A "Showerthought" is a simple term used to describe the thoughts that pop into your head while you're doing everyday things like taking a shower, driving, or just daydreaming. The most popular seem to be lighthearted clever little truths, hidden in daily life.
Here are some examples to inspire your own showerthoughts:
- Both “200” and “160” are 2 minutes in microwave math
- When you’re a kid, you don’t realize you’re also watching your mom and dad grow up.
- More dreams have been destroyed by alarm clocks than anything else
Rules
- All posts must be showerthoughts
- The entire showerthought must be in the title
- No politics
- If your topic is in a grey area, please phrase it to emphasize the fascinating aspects, not the dramatic aspects. You can do this by avoiding overly politicized terms such as "capitalism" and "communism". If you must make comparisons, you can say something is different without saying something is better/worse.
- A good place for politics is c/politicaldiscussion
- Posts must be original/unique
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If you made it this far, showerthoughts is accepting new mods. This community is generally tame so its not a lot of work, but having a few more mods would help reports get addressed a little sooner.
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There is no right or wrong with expanding a language. A language is never set in stone, it evolves as people use it. If a large amount of people use a word a certain way, no one has the authority to say that it is wrong. This sort of change is what makes a language alive. Only dead languages are set in stone.
If you disagree with this, then you should use old english, not this peasant modern variant we all use. Have a bit of consistency!
Linguistic drift towards being less comprehensible is objectively bad, fucking duh
That's a subjective observation. Most people have no problem understanding a word that has different meanings (so, almost every single word) based on context.
Anyway, this has been fun but I'm all out of time to waste on you! Good luck to you :)
Most people have no trouble walking, the invention of the wheelchair was still a step in the right direction because people exist for whom that is not true. A more comprehensible language is objectively better whether it makes a difference for you or not.