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David
I dare you to try
Joined: 27 Jul 2003 Location: Andromeda
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Post subject: Literally | |
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I don't know who else has noticed this word being used in entirely the wrong context. The worst thing is, the main offenders are newspaper writers, who should really know better
The annoying thing is I've seen it misused on many occasions in the Herald Sun and at the moment can't think of one quote that backs this up. So I'll just link to a webpage I found that has some good examples (from elsewhere):
http://literally.barelyfitz.com/
By the way, I can't believe someone devoted an entire blog to it
For those who don't know, literally means it is actually the case, usually when referring to metaphors. So if you say a football player is literally a star, you are saying he is a big ball of gas in outer space. _________________ All watched over by machines of loving grace |
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Pa Marmo
Side by Side
Joined: 16 Jun 2003 Location: Nicks BB member #617
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David you will also see them using "an" before a "h" that isn’t silent. Seeing they can’t be truthfully correct they should be at least grammatically correct. _________________ Genesis 1:1 |
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Piethagoras' Theorem
the hypotenuse, is always a cakewalk
Joined: 29 May 2006
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Yes, very annoying DFC. I also find these 'americanisms' creeping into our language very annoying such as stop it 'already' or the word 'period' being used to describe an ending or full stop.
A little off topic here but annoying nonetheless and the one that bugs me most with the Yanks (fortunately not used here) is the use of 'I am too' or 'you are too' instead of 'I am so' or 'you are so' _________________ Formally frankiboy and FrankieGoesToCollingwood. |
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Robert Walls (not really)
Joined: 26 Jun 2006
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how about "like"
"like, you know, like" |
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Cathalyst
Joined: 22 Jul 2006
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Post subject: Re: Literally | |
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David from Canberra wrote: |
For those who don't know, literally means it is actually the case, usually when referring to metaphors. So if you say a football player is literally a star, you are saying he is a big ball of gas in outer space. |
Wrong! Star has more than one meaning and therefore is a seperate word to a sun, so your example is quite "literally".... flawed |
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David
I dare you to try
Joined: 27 Jul 2003 Location: Andromeda
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There is only one sun Cathalyst. True, the word star has almost come to mean something different, but if you say someone is "literally a star" then you could only really mean one thing. The funny thing is I don't even know if anyone has ever used that expression _________________ All watched over by machines of loving grace |
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Cathalyst
Joined: 22 Jul 2006
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David from Canberra wrote: | There is only one sun Cathalyst. True, the word star has almost come to mean something different, but if you say someone is "literally a star" then you could only really mean one thing. The funny thing is I don't even know if anyone has ever used that expression | There's no "almost" about it, star has several meanings ansd therefore is several different words
And there are many suns, just not in this little backwater solar system |
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David
I dare you to try
Joined: 27 Jul 2003 Location: Andromeda
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I was under the impression that the Sun is only our Sun because it is the star around which OUR solar system revolves. Every other star, is a star.
By the way I think it's silly for people to refer to our solar system as a "backwater" or use terms like that. From the way we look at it, it's the most important solar system in the universe, obviously, just as Earth is the most important planet in the solar system, to us.
As for star having different meanings, the reason I said it only means one thing is because star in the sense of a sports player derives from the word star, and is used in a metaphorical sense. A word that truly has several meanings is "like", which can be a synonym for "to enjoy" or "similar to"
Sorry if I'm starting to sound like a wank*r but this stuff interests me for some reason. _________________ All watched over by machines of loving grace |
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Cathalyst
Joined: 22 Jul 2006
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Wrong again, stars are suns, has nothing to do with just being ours.
And backwater is a very accurate representation of where we are in the galaxy, hidden away in a very insignificant corner of it in relation to the giant black hole at the centre of it, thats the view of astronomers, not mine |
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David
I dare you to try
Joined: 27 Jul 2003 Location: Andromeda
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I guess we'll have to agree to disagree. Astronomers would say that because they're looking at it in context of everything in the universe. All I'm saying is, from our point of view (our = every human being who has ever lived) it is the most important solar system there is so unless we can go and trade it for a bigger better solar system we should be happy with what we've got _________________ All watched over by machines of loving grace |
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Cathalyst
Joined: 22 Jul 2006
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David from Canberra wrote: | I guess we'll have to agree to disagree. Astronomers would say that because they're looking at it in context of everything in the universe. All I'm saying is, from our point of view (our = every human being who has ever lived) it is the most important solar system there is so unless we can go and trade it for a bigger better solar system we should be happy with what we've got |
Astronomically we are in a particularly uninteresting part of the galaxy, thats an objective fact, you are speaking about a subjective emotional call, the christians used to think the earth was the centre of the universe, but it didn't make it true |
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pica
Joined: 09 Aug 2004
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Post subject: Re: Literally | |
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Cathalyst wrote: | Wrong! Star has more than one meaning and therefore is a seperate word to a sun, so your example is quite "literally".... flawed |
Just like your spelling is flawed. It's "separate" |
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Cathalyst
Joined: 22 Jul 2006
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Post subject: Re: Literally | |
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pica wrote: |
Just like your spelling is flawed. It's "separate" |
No, your presumption is flawed, it was a typo, thats what ya get for being a nit pica |
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David
I dare you to try
Joined: 27 Jul 2003 Location: Andromeda
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To be honest I can never get seperate/separate right. But the word that bugs me the most is necessary. Seriously that one is a nightmare. I automatically spell it nesseccary and have to correct myself each time. I think if you look through some of my older posts you'll also see "critiscism" appear a fair bit. The first S shouldn't be there _________________ All watched over by machines of loving grace |
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HAL
Please don't shout at me - I can't help it.
Joined: 17 Mar 2003
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You are a good speller. |
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