# Literally now literally means figuratively **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [October 17, 2013, 4:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/literally-now-literally-means-figuratively/671498 "2013-10-17T16:48:57Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 10
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [October 22, 2013, 11:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/literally-now-literally-means-figuratively/671498/181 "2013-10-22T23:04:43Z")
(Whoops. Misread the first part of the post). > [@](#): > > I don’t believe anybody has produced evidence that its connotation has changed, especially not in anybody’s lifetime. Yeah, this I agree with. Fowler was complaining about it in _A Dictionary of Modern English Usage_ (1926), which, to me, says that it was already in common use. [Hope this cite works.](http://books.google.com/books?id=hrtIDakUpA4C&lpg=PT779&ots=ZS3d4YAapL&dq=We%20have%20come%20to%20such%20a%20pass%20with%20this%20emphasizer%20that%20where%20the%20truth%20would%20require%20us%20to%20insert%20with%20a%20strong%20expression%20'not%20literally%2C%20of%20course%2C%20but%20in%20a%20manner%20of%20speaking'%2C%20we%20do%20not%20hesitate%20to%20insert%20the%20very%20word%20we%20ought%20to%20be%20at%20pains%20to%20repudiate%3B%20...%20such%20false%20coin%20makes%20honest%20traffic%20in%20words%20impossible.&pg=PT779#v=onepage&q&f=false) It’s nearly been 90 years, and not even the grammarian’s grammarian, H.W. Fowler, managed to stamp out its usage. Ship. Has. Sailed. ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2013, 12:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/literally-now-literally-means-figuratively/671498/182 "2013-10-23T00:29:32Z")
I’ve never used the word literally unless I wanted to emphasis that it actually happened. I came home and discovered my dog had literally ripped the sofa to shreds. Meaning of course a lot of visible damage. Not just a minor tear in the fabric. ---
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2013, 1:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/literally-now-literally-means-figuratively/671498/183 "2013-10-23T01:32:57Z")
> [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](#): > > Uh, no, Einstein. Your example fails on both accounts. First, Alcott WAS deliberately creating confusion, just a tiny bit of it necessary for the humor value of the passage. Second, when you read carefully, the meaning IS clear. It just takes some careful reading. On second thought, I want to revise this slightly. Alcott isn’t deliberately creating confusion between the denotative meaning and the hyperbolic meaning of the word. Rather, she’s using an expression that is almost always idiomatic and is applying “literally” to it to show that in this case it isn’t idiomatic, deriving humor from this unexpected twist. The thing is, when “literally” is applied to an idiom, it’s nearly always meant as an intensifier: if I say something is “literally the land of milk and honey,” I almost never mean that we’re talking actual milk, actual honey. So yeah, this is a source where there’s legit initial confusion. But the word “initial” is important, because if you read it carefully, you’ll see that this is a case in which the author is twisting the idiom itself, and therefore an intensifier doesn’t work on it. It’s not a case in which a careful reader has any lasting confusion about what’s meant. ---
**Author:** ![TokyoBayer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tokyobayer/32/13989_2.png) [@TokyoBayer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TokyoBayer)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2013, 3:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/literally-now-literally-means-figuratively/671498/184 "2013-10-23T03:08:59Z")
> [@aceplace57](#): > > I came home and discovered my dog had literally ripped the sofa to shreds. And did you literally hit the ceiling? ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2013, 3:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/literally-now-literally-means-figuratively/671498/185 "2013-10-23T03:51:34Z")
How else are you supposed to make it clear that you’re stating something without exaggeration or hyperbole? Our every day language is riddled with hyperbole. It trivializes our conversations. The word “literally” helps clarify that whatever you state is a honest feeling or something that actually happened. That’s how I use it anyhow. I can’t speak for other people. Hyperbole makes conversations more vibrant and interesting. But, there’s a time when it a person needs to make it clear they are speaking honestly and plainly. ---
**Author:** ![Inner\_Stickler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inner_stickler/32/318_2.png) [@Inner\_Stickler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inner_Stickler)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2013, 3:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/literally-now-literally-means-figuratively/671498/186 "2013-10-23T03:59:39Z")
for real legit no joke verily i shit you not truly without a doubt not making this up unhyperbolically literally ---
**Author:** ![fjs1fs](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/9e8a1a/32.png) [@fjs1fs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fjs1fs)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2013, 2:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/literally-now-literally-means-figuratively/671498/187 "2013-10-23T14:58:51Z")
> [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](#): > > On second thought, I want to revise this slightly. Alcott isn’t deliberately creating confusion between the denotative meaning and the hyperbolic meaning of the word. Rather, she’s using an expression that is almost always idiomatic and is applying “literally” to it to show that in this case it isn’t idiomatic, deriving humor from this unexpected twist. > > The thing is, when “literally” is applied to an idiom, it’s nearly always meant as an intensifier: if I say something is “literally the land of milk and honey,” I almost never mean that we’re talking actual milk, actual honey. So yeah, this is a source where there’s legit initial confusion. > > But the word “initial” is important, because if you read it carefully, you’ll see that this is a case in which the author is twisting the idiom itself, and therefore an intensifier doesn’t work on it. > > It’s not a case in which a careful reader has any lasting confusion about what’s meant. Are you sure? Why don’t you read it a few more times and get back to me on what she really meant–since, per your overly sarcastic comment yesterday you were 100% sure you knew her mindset. ---
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2013, 4:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/literally-now-literally-means-figuratively/671498/188 "2013-10-23T16:06:17Z")
> [@fjs1fs](#): > > Are you sure? Why don’t you read it a few more times and get back to me on what she really meant–since, per your overly sarcastic comment yesterday you were 100% sure you knew her mindset. If you were a Lacanian deconstructionist, you might at least have a philosophy to back up your petulance. As it is, it’s just sad. Yes, actually: good readers sometimes reread and revise their understanding. That’s part of being a good reader. If you think I’m suggesting I’m 100% certain I knew her mindset, you may wish to practice those good reading skills yourself. ---
**Author:** ![runningdude](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e9c0ed/32.png) [@runningdude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/runningdude)\ **Post date:** [October 23, 2013, 11:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/literally-now-literally-means-figuratively/671498/189 "2013-10-23T23:48:32Z")
> [@aceplace57](#): > > I’ve never used the word literally unless I wanted to emphasis that it actually happened. > > I came home and discovered my dog had literally ripped the sofa to shreds. > > Meaning of course a lot of visible damage. Not just a minor tear in the fabric. Nah, that’s still a mere intensifier. “Ripped to shreds” adequately captures the literal meaning you intend. “Literally” is thus superfluous; you use it only to add whimsy and exasperation to your story, as it does when used purely figuratively. ---
**Author:** ![Jeff\_Lichtman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jeff_lichtman/32/1531_2.png) [@Jeff\_Lichtman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jeff_Lichtman)\ **Post date:** [October 24, 2013, 8:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/literally-now-literally-means-figuratively/671498/190 "2013-10-24T08:19:59Z")
> [@Machine\_Elf](#): > > . . . [people who employ scare quotes for emphasis will no longer be laughed at.](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=keMpUaoA3Tg) Am I missing something? What do neodymium magnets and copper pipes have to do with scare quotes? Cool video, in any case. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/literally-now-literally-means-figuratively/671498.md?page=9)