I don’t consider myself a linguistic pedant. I try to use punctuation as well and clearly as I am able but I’m not too bothered about how others punctuate – provided it does not lead to misunderstanding.
And I’m not too bothered about the way in which language evolves and the meaning of words changes, although you need to be careful that you do not weaken the language or introduce contradictions. In ‘Through the Looking Glass‘ Humpty Dumpty said “When I use a word it means just what I choose it to mean — neither more nor less“. But I don’t think you should use that as a licence to make up your own words. Lewis Carroll (Charles Lutwidge Dodgson) was quite capable of writing that just to mock people who did it.
Given all that, I sometimes get grumpy when people use ‘literally’ in what I consider the wrong sense. An example: someone has fallen into a river and is in danger of dying. He is literally drowning. On the other hand, someone is overburdened with work. He might well say “Oh dear, I am drowning under the pressure of work.” This is a metaphorical use of the word drowning. But nowadays I hear more and more people saying things like “I am literally drowning in work” or “I could literally murder a coffee”.
So I feel rather pleased with myself, and perhaps slightly superior, that I use literally in what I consider the correct way.
But pride before a fall, and a strong dose of cognitive dissonance. Looking the Oxford English Dictionary online gives the meaning: “In a literal, exact, or actual sense; not figuratively, allegorically, etc.” I would agree with that. But it also gives a colloquial meaning: “Used to indicate that some (freq. conventional) metaphorical or hyperbolical expression is to be taken in the strongest admissible sense: ‘virtually, as good as’; (also) ‘completely, utterly, absolutely’.” So you can literally murder a cup of coffee and claim the OED in defence. Mind you, the OED does add: “Now one of the most common uses, although often considered irregular in standard English since it reverses the original sense of literally (‘not figuratively or metaphorically’).”
And this is not a new usage. In 1876 Mark Twain, writing about Tom Sawyer, said: ” And when the middle of the afternoon came, from being a poor poverty-stricken boy in the morning, Tom was literally rolling in wealth.”
But I still feel uncomfortable about that usage of ‘literally’ and I would slap my hand if I found myself saying it.
Postscript: I realise how long it is since I last blogged. Life has been getting in the way, mainly in the shape of Windows 10. But that is another story.
Grumpy Old Scientist 