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> [Paraphrased] Words mean different things to different people! Anyone can choose any definition they want! No, words have quite definite meanings. Otherwis

by teddyh 1y ago

> [Paraphrased] Words mean different things to different people! Anyone can choose any definition they want! No, words have quite definite meanings. Otherwise, they are not an aid to communication.

CaptainOfCoit 1y ago
How is tributes to lords from vassals related to communication? Oh wait, you didn't mean that meaning of the word "aid"? But words only have one meaning...
latexr 1y ago
> No, words have quite definite meanings. Were that the case, “literally” would not literally mean both itself and its opposite. https://www.merriam-webster.com/grammar/misuse-of-literally https://www.merriam-webster.com/grammar/misuse-of-literally Words change meaning frequently throughout history, depending on how they are (mis)used. Or they can change meaning depending on context or part of the country/world. https://www.vox.com/2015/11/29/9806038/great-british-baking-show-pudding-biscuit https://www.vox.com/2015/11/29/9806038/great-british-baking-... Sometimes drastically. https://www.reddit.com/r/TooAfraidToAsk/comments/kc41mu/why_do_british_people_still_use_the_word_fag_for/ https://www.reddit.com/r/TooAfraidToAsk/comments/kc41mu/why_... > Otherwise, they are not an aid to communication. I do agree with you that it makes it harder, but communication does depend on more than just the words.
- voakbasda 1y ago
  Literally not meaning literally is literally an example of the enshitification of language.
  - latexr 1y ago
    > the enshitification of language Good example of words losing their meaning. “Enshittification” is barely an infant as a word and it has a very specific meaning, but people are already using to mean “something I dislike”. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Enshittification https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Enshittification
- bigstrat2003 1y ago
  > Were that the case, “literally” would not literally mean both itself and its opposite. It doesn't mean the opposite. People misuse it a lot in that way, but they are quite wrong.
  - latexr 1y ago
    Read the link and follow the definition. The “figurative”, “for emphasis” usage of literally was officially added to dictionaries, meaning it is official it means that, whether we like it or not. Whenever you tell people they are wrong for that usage of “literally”, you are now the wrong one. You are advocating for prescriptivism, but descriptivism is a perfectly valid approach to language. https://www.merriam-webster.com/grammar/descriptive-vs-prescriptive-defining-lexicography https://www.merriam-webster.com/grammar/descriptive-vs-presc... We all use plenty of words by their “wrong” meaning, because they changed over time and before we were born.
cakeday 1y ago
That's actually not correct at all.

by teddyh 1y ago

> [Paraphrased] Words mean different things to different people! Anyone can choose any definition they want! No, words have quite definite meanings. Otherwise, they are not an aid to communication.

CaptainOfCoit 1y ago

How is tributes to lords from vassals related to communication? Oh wait, you didn't mean that meaning of the word "aid"? But words only have one meaning...

latexr 1y ago

> No, words have quite definite meanings. Were that the case, “literally” would not literally mean both itself and its opposite. https://www.merriam-webster.com/grammar/misuse-of-literally https://www.merriam-webster.com/grammar/misuse-of-literally Words change meaning frequently throughout history, depending on how they are (mis)used. Or they can change meaning depending on context or part of the country/world. https://www.vox.com/2015/11/29/9806038/great-british-baking-show-pudding-biscuit https://www.vox.com/2015/11/29/9806038/great-british-baking-... Sometimes drastically. https://www.reddit.com/r/TooAfraidToAsk/comments/kc41mu/why_do_british_people_still_use_the_word_fag_for/ https://www.reddit.com/r/TooAfraidToAsk/comments/kc41mu/why_... > Otherwise, they are not an aid to communication. I do agree with you that it makes it harder, but communication does depend on more than just the words.

voakbasda 1y ago
Literally not meaning literally is literally an example of the enshitification of language.
- latexr 1y ago
  > the enshitification of language Good example of words losing their meaning. “Enshittification” is barely an infant as a word and it has a very specific meaning, but people are already using to mean “something I dislike”. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Enshittification https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Enshittification
bigstrat2003 1y ago
> Were that the case, “literally” would not literally mean both itself and its opposite. It doesn't mean the opposite. People misuse it a lot in that way, but they are quite wrong.
- latexr 1y ago
  Read the link and follow the definition. The “figurative”, “for emphasis” usage of literally was officially added to dictionaries, meaning it is official it means that, whether we like it or not. Whenever you tell people they are wrong for that usage of “literally”, you are now the wrong one. You are advocating for prescriptivism, but descriptivism is a perfectly valid approach to language. https://www.merriam-webster.com/grammar/descriptive-vs-prescriptive-defining-lexicography https://www.merriam-webster.com/grammar/descriptive-vs-presc... We all use plenty of words by their “wrong” meaning, because they changed over time and before we were born.

cakeday 1y ago

That's actually not correct at all.