Should the word “literally” be abandoned?

The writer in The Guardian believes that the word literally should be set aside (at least for a while), not only because it is used in a sense directly opposed to its original meaning (i.e., meaning ‘figuratively’), but also because it is associated with (female) teenage speech and when it is used “properly”, it actually evokes surprise.

http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2013/aug/13/literally-broken-english-language-definition

What do you think? Note that this usage is recorded in the OED going back as far as 1769.

This entry was posted in Uncategorized. Bookmark the permalink.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *