# Learn to use the word LITERALLY!! AHHHH!! **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [November 4, 2001, 3:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/learn-to-use-the-word-literally-ahhhh/91396 "2001-11-04T03:43:45Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Lucki\_Chaarms](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/9de0a6/32.png) [@Lucki\_Chaarms](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lucki_Chaarms)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2001, 3:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/learn-to-use-the-word-literally-ahhhh/91396/1 "2001-11-04T03:43:45Z")
This is mostly a pet peeve of mine because my mother is simply THE WORST about it. She has to include it many many times in every conversation, and she misuses it EVERY SINGLE TIME! Just off the top of my head: > [@](#): > > _Originally Posted by My Mom_ > \*\*It was so hot. Literally hellish. > > You should have seen it, the police officer literally dressed him down. > > He literally sat me down and drew me this diagram > > I’ve seen him literally bend his fingers back like this to crack them\*\* It seems to be just randomly inserted in to otherwise coherent sentences, or worse, in front of figures of speech. “I literally laughed my ass off” NO YOU DID NOT!! AAAAHHHHH!!! Does this piss anyone else off as much as me? Makes me want to slap people. It’s only possible to correct someone so often without being a total asshole, and there’s **literally** no way I could hope to put a dent in this within that range. What are the best one’s you’ve heard? LC ---
**Author:** ![december](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/838e76/32.png) [@december](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/december)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2001, 3:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/learn-to-use-the-word-literally-ahhhh/91396/2 "2001-11-04T03:48:19Z")
The word “literally” used literally means “literally” The word “literally” used figuratively means “figuratively.” All clear now? ---
**Author:** ![Gozu\_Tashoya](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/7993a0/32.png) [@Gozu\_Tashoya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gozu_Tashoya)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2001, 4:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/learn-to-use-the-word-literally-ahhhh/91396/3 "2001-11-04T04:11:21Z")
Worst thing I ever heard on TV - on the news, no less - was “The CD literally climbed up the charts.” My reaction: “What kind of freaky ass CDs are _you_ buying?” ---
**Author:** ![Bob\_Scene](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e19adc/32.png) [@Bob\_Scene](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bob_Scene)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2001, 4:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/learn-to-use-the-word-literally-ahhhh/91396/4 "2001-11-04T04:15:55Z")
Thanks, **Lucki.** That was literally the most badly-needed rant I’ve read in literally ages. ---
**Author:** ![Enderw24](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ba9def/32.png) [@Enderw24](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enderw24)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2001, 5:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/learn-to-use-the-word-literally-ahhhh/91396/5 "2001-11-04T05:59:17Z")
I literally masturbated with joy at your OP subject. ---
**Author:** ![SPOOFE](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c5a1d2/32.png) [@SPOOFE](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SPOOFE)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2001, 6:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/learn-to-use-the-word-literally-ahhhh/91396/6 "2001-11-04T06:11:33Z")
They’re not literally being literal, you know. ---
**Author:** ![Punoqllads](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/d2c977/32.png) [@Punoqllads](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Punoqllads)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2001, 10:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/learn-to-use-the-word-literally-ahhhh/91396/7 "2001-11-04T10:54:04Z")
I literally died laughing. ---
**Author:** ![CyberHippy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/dec6dc/32.png) [@CyberHippy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CyberHippy)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2001, 11:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/learn-to-use-the-word-literally-ahhhh/91396/8 "2001-11-04T11:08:33Z")
This is one of those annoying ways that crap from TV shows can sneak its way into our vocabulary, giving those of us who don’t watch the show being referenced some really awkward moments. I think the “literally” thing is from a recurring Saturday Night Live skit. When I avoided TV for several years there were people who I _literally_ couldn’t communicate with. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![poohpah\_chalupa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/91b2a8/32.png) [@poohpah\_chalupa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/poohpah_chalupa)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2001, 1:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/learn-to-use-the-word-literally-ahhhh/91396/9 "2001-11-04T13:34:06Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Enderw24 \* > \*\*I literally masturbated with joy at your OP subject. \*\* Thanks for the chuckle over this post, **Enderw24** …I literally busted a gut over it! [sub]oops.[/sub] ---
**Author:** ![heresiarch](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/278dde/32.png) [@heresiarch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/heresiarch)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2001, 2:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/learn-to-use-the-word-literally-ahhhh/91396/10 "2001-11-04T14:02:30Z")
It’s rampant. As a kid, I was confused for years about whether “literally” meant “literally” or “figuratively.” Just when I thought I’d figured it out, some numbnuts would say something like “The record literally climbed up the charts,” and I’d be confused again. ---
**Author:** ![lenin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/3bc359/32.png) [@lenin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lenin)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2001, 2:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/learn-to-use-the-word-literally-ahhhh/91396/11 "2001-11-04T14:37:44Z")
I always use literally to mean ‘not as an expression of speech.’ Anyone who uses literally to mean ‘figuratively’ should be shot, because you’re createing a meaning for a word that is the opposite of the current meaning. ---
**Author:** ![mske](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ccd318/32.png) [@mske](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mske)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2001, 3:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/learn-to-use-the-word-literally-ahhhh/91396/12 "2001-11-04T15:56:13Z")
I **literally** just read this same rant in the latest issue of _Sports Illustrated_… ---
**Author:** ![djf750](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ea666f/32.png) [@djf750](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/djf750)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2001, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/learn-to-use-the-word-literally-ahhhh/91396/13 "2001-11-04T17:26:07Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by mske \* > \*\*I **literally** just read this same rant in the latest issue of _Sports Illustrated_… \*\* I literally was going to post this exact post, as I literally just read that column in SI , literally, yesterday. Now what figuratively drives me nuts, is when someone uses the word “nonplus” incorrectly. I have literally seen that more than once in columns written by professional writers. ---
**Author:** ![Billy\_Rubin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/billy_rubin/32/3622_2.png) [@Billy\_Rubin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Billy_Rubin)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2001, 5:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/learn-to-use-the-word-literally-ahhhh/91396/14 "2001-11-04T17:28:03Z")
I literally didn’t think that there were that many illiterate people out there. b. ---
**Author:** ![astro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9dc877/32.png) [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2001, 5:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/learn-to-use-the-word-literally-ahhhh/91396/15 "2001-11-04T17:32:31Z")
Random House is apparently not quite as judgemental as you pack of pedants. Usage. Since the early 20th century, LITERALLY has been widely used as an intensifier meaning "in effect virtually ": The senator was literally buried alive in the June primaries. This use is often criticized; nevertheless, it appears in all but the most carefully edited writing, and probably neither distorts nor enhances the intended meaning-which, as in the example above, may already be couched in figurative language. In such cases, nothing is lost by omitting LITERALLY. ---
**Author:** ![sailor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a587f6/32.png) [@sailor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sailor)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2001, 7:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/learn-to-use-the-word-literally-ahhhh/91396/16 "2001-11-04T19:15:07Z")
\>\> I literally masturbated with joy Do you mean you were reading the text rather than looking at the pictures? I must be an “illiterate masturbator” then because I always look at the pictures … except when I’m with Joy (yeah, the one with the short hair and perky breasts)… then she does it all for me 😉 Another pet peeve of mine is the much abused, misused and overused “basically”. So, basically I have literally nothing to add to this thread. ---
**Author:** ![Patty\_O\_Furniture](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/96bed5/32.png) [@Patty\_O\_Furniture](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Patty_O_Furniture)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2001, 8:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/learn-to-use-the-word-literally-ahhhh/91396/17 "2001-11-04T20:05:24Z")
Being in the dictionary does not make it tolerable! To wit: in·flam·ma·ble (n-flm-bl) _adj._ 1. flammable. 2. excitable. (I realize the prefix _in-_ has a different derivation, that still doesn’t give “inflammable” any more legitimacy in my book) _Irregardless_ & _ain’t_ are also in the dictionary, although identified as nonstandard. [sarcasm]I say we all burn our dictionaries so we won’t have to put up with this nonsense any more![/sarcasm] ---
**Author:** ![Anamorphic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/anamorphic/32/3057_2.png) [@Anamorphic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anamorphic)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2001, 8:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/learn-to-use-the-word-literally-ahhhh/91396/18 "2001-11-04T20:17:12Z")
One of my pet peeves, as well. In fact, I started one of my very first [threads](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?threadid=47787) about this very pet peeve, literally a zillion years ago! 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Stoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stoid/32/272_2.png) [@Stoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stoid)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2001, 8:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/learn-to-use-the-word-literally-ahhhh/91396/19 "2001-11-04T20:46:53Z")
Seems to me examples # 3 and #4 could be be accurate usage. Of course, I wasn’t there so i don’t know. They just don’t strike me as outrageous. 😕 ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2001, 8:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/learn-to-use-the-word-literally-ahhhh/91396/20 "2001-11-04T20:55:03Z")
Years ago, I saw “He literally blew up” in print somewhere. All I could think of was, spontaneous human combustion. 🙂 [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/learn-to-use-the-word-literally-ahhhh/91396.md?page=2)