Like how I changed "Honestly" to "Literally". Both are English but over here we don't use "Honestly" like that so the word "Literally" was a better choice.

[–] uriel238@lemmy.blahaj.zone 10 points 3 months ago

For us old fogeys, literally still means without metaphor, so someone who literally shit the bed actually soiled their bedsheets leaving a mess for maid service, as opposed to figuratively making a mess in an other situation.

Honest, honest Iago just looked like a reliable friend who tells the truth and intends no harm. Politicians are honest. My weather station, when properly calibrated, is truthful in that it reports accurate facts.

[–] maccentric@sh.itjust.works 4 points 3 months ago (1 children)

But literally literally means figuratively these days

[–] Gormadt@lemmy.blahaj.zone 3 points 3 months ago (2 children)

And honestly honestly can mean figuratively as well

Words are weird yo

Definitions shifting and twisting over time is honestly so damn cool though, and common spellings falling out of favor for different ones is also pretty cool

[–] maccentric@sh.itjust.works 2 points 3 months ago

The speed with which words change these days is dizzying, it’s honestly making my head literally spin

[–] brbposting@sh.itjust.works 1 points 3 months ago

Context sure is important - like when a late-night host throws in

and this is true

before delivering a line that may be so preposterous the entire theater erupts in laughter. Or it might be followed by them reading a nearly unbelievable headline from a reputable source as it’s superimposed on screen.