Literally and Figuratively

Cloze:

____ has been made of the use, misuse and overuse of the word “literally.”

Literally, of _____, means something that is actually true: “Literally every pair of shoes I own was ruined when my apartment flooded.”

When we use words not in their normal literal meaning ____ in a way that makes a description more impressive or interesting, the correct word, of course, is “figuratively.”

But people increasingly use “literally” to give extreme emphasis to a statement that cannot be true, ___ in: “My head literally exploded when I read Merriam-Webster, among others, is now sanctioning the ___ of literally to mean just ___ opposite.”

 Indeed, Ragan’s PR Daily reported last week that Webster, Macmillan Dictionary and Google have added this latter informal use of “literally” as part of the word’s official definition. The Cambridge Dictionary has also jumped ___ board.

Webster’s first definition of literally ___, “in a literal sense or matter; actually.” Its second definition is, “in effect; virtually.” ___ addressing this seeming contradiction, its authors comment: “Since some people take sense two to be the opposite of sense ___, it has been frequently criticized ___ a misuse. Instead, the use is pure hyperbole intended to gain emphasis, but it often appears in contexts where ___ additional emphasis is necessary.”

So what are your thoughts on all this? Are you figuratively dying of angst ____ the decline of the English language, are you literally thrilled to pieces, or are you ______ in between?

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