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> Literally does mean virtually now. : ( I don't disagree with you, and I get that prescriptivism is a losing battle (and the wrong battle, IMO), but this on

• burkaman 9y ago
  No we didn't. Exaggeration is a normal part of language, and every strong-sounding word will be "misused" for effect sometimes. "This heat is killing me", "I'm in love with this ice cream", "I swear to god...", etc. It's almost always clear which version of "literally" someone is using, and I suspect the exaggerated usage is as old as the word itself.
  • wutbrodo 9y ago
    > It's almost always clear which version of "literally" someone is using None of these examples are relevant. > This heat is killing me No ambiguity in the misuse here, since you would literally be the first person who had ever talked to the living dead. > I'm in love with this ice cream "In love" isn't well-defined. How is this even a misuse? > I swear to god Again, how is this a misuse? You might argue that people swear to god too casually, but that's a far cry from somehow claiming that you're certain that the person doesn't _actually_ mean they're swearing to god. By contrast, I've already personally come across cases where people used the word literally and were misunderstood as meaning "a lot". On more than one occasion!