On The Proper and
Improper Uses of the Word Literally
The
word “literally” has, for some reason, become popular in the local Southern
vernacular of the English language. I don’t know why for certain, but I
theorize that to certain people the use of the word gives off an air of
intelligence. However, to someone who actually knows the proper use of the word
“literally”, the sentence “I was literally really terrified,” just sounds
stupid. “Literally” is not a substitute for the word “really.” It does not mean
“extremely” or “very” and it should not be used to express vehemence. “Literally,”
when used properly, is used only in the company of metaphors, similes, or
hyperboles to express that the statement accompanying actually is not a
metaphor, simile, or hyperbole.
For
instance, “literally” should not be present in this sentence: “I was literally
so, so happy!” That sentence does not contain a hyperbole, metaphor, or simile.
It can, however, be used here: “I was literally so happy I could burst, because
when I was five and three months old my parents had a bomb implanted in my
stomach that would be triggered by extreme emotions.” Usually when people say
that they are so happy they could burst, it is an exaggeration based on the
excited, swelling feeling they had. Here, however, the unfortunate speaker was
so happy that the bomb in her stomach could have exploded, making her literally
burst. She was clarifying that she was not in fact exaggerating for effect,
but being deadly serious. Thus, the correct use of the word “literally.”
See
again an example with a metaphor: “Even by math teacher standards, she was an
evil little imp.” Here the speaker is merely comparing her math teacher to an
imp (the teacher probably assigns a lot of homework and doesn’t bother reviewing
the material.) However, consider this statement: “My math teacher is literally
an evil little imp!” To the educated observer, this sentence means either one
of two things: one; that the math teacher is a horned creature from the depths
of hell (or an extremely mischievous child), or two; that the speaker is an *effing idiot.
If
you’ve done this before, don’t worry. Your sins against the English language
are forgiven, mostly; by me, anyway, provided that you repent and don’t do it
ever ever again or else I will throw you into Grammar Hell. Are we understood?
Mara Nelms is the author of the blog:
My Purse bit my Best Friend, which is extremely entertaining as you may have guessed. We look forward to more guest posts from Mara.
*in an effort to keep this blog PG13, I changed one word. I'm not a fan of censorship but my readers range in age from thirteen on up and generally don't see that type of language from me or my posts. Thank you for understanding. (not that they can't figure out what the word is supposed to be anyway)
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