this post was submitted on 23 Apr 2025
1205 points (98.2% liked)
Microblog Memes
7475 readers
2150 users here now
A place to share screenshots of Microblog posts, whether from Mastodon, tumblr, ~~Twitter~~ X, KBin, Threads or elsewhere.
Created as an evolution of White People Twitter and other tweet-capture subreddits.
Rules:
- Please put at least one word relevant to the post in the post title.
- Be nice.
- No advertising, brand promotion or guerilla marketing.
- Posters are encouraged to link to the toot or tweet etc in the description of posts.
Related communities:
founded 2 years ago
MODERATORS
you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments
view the rest of the comments
AI sure killed the motto KISS. Copilot for notepad is literally using a nuclear reactor to light a single bulb.
Figuratively
That too.
Literal is the exact opposite of figurative...
https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/figurative
I wonder, why is 'literally' so special?
Someone steps out into unexpectedly cold weather and says, "It's freezing out here." But it's not below freezing.
Someone that hasn't eaten all day takes a bite and says, "I was starving, this is the best burger I've ever tasted!" They weren't really starving, and they probably didn't just rank every burger they've eaten.
We exaggerate and/or use words incorrectly for the effect so often, people are constantly using words "incorrectly" but then they say, "I'm literally dead right now." and dictionaries change their definitions and people point out semantics. It's like literally is figuratively magic.
I think "literally" should be an exception because it's the only word to clarify when we're not speaking figuratively. It's like making your safe word "fuck me harder".
It’s almost like language is radically democratic and words only mean what we largely agree they mean, with fluctuating cases based on particular contexts.
Yeah, somehow "literally" is the only word in a figure of speech that cannot be part of the figure at all! They are so smart for pointing that out
"Freezing" is an exaggeration of "cold", just like "starving" is an exaggeration of "hungry". It's "a lot of X".
"Literally" is not an exaggeration, it's the opposite of "figuratively". It's "-X".
Those are two entirely different things. But of course inflammable means flammable.
Correct, it's an "intensifier"
And "terrific" and "awesome" are exaggerations of "scary".
Yes. Am I meant to add anything here?
No, it's just another example that words' usages and meanings can change a lot, even flip, over time. A new usage can literally spread like a ~~~~virus~~~~ meme and become the meaning - at least to all intensive porpoises.
I know, it's completely normal. Doesn't mean I have to like a particular usage.
Incorrect.
Freezing
"Freezing is a phase transition in which a liquid turns into a solid when its temperature is lowered below its freezing point."
Starvation
"Starvation is a severe deficiency in caloric energy intake, below the level needed to maintain an organism's life."
You are literally wrong, and I will accept a 1-page apology written in MLA format before the end of this week.
I honestly do not see the contradiction. "Very cold" -> liquid turns to solid. "Very hungry" -> severe deficiency.
Then how do you explain iron, which freezes below 2,800 Fahrenheit, hm? 2,800 Fahrenheit is hot.
"Very" and "a lot" are subjective.
You cannot be "freezing" unless you are a bloodsicle. This follows from the exact definition of the word. Words have meanings, you know. If people can just say whatever they want, then what is the point of communication?
What part of that definition implies "bloodsicle"?
Not to mention how is that an answer to what I said?
blood is liquid
Thank you for being so very elaborate, that cleared everything up. (It didn't.)
Sanction is the exact opposite of sanction, but you never see people moan about that for some reason
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Contronym
Canada . . . seriously? I can't sanction that type of behaviour.
That's the problem with being influenced by both British and American English. We have both senses in New Zealand English too, although I think the US one is slowly winning out and the British one might one day fall out of use.
https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/literally
That's one of it's senses, yes, but how many of those definitions are the opposite of figurative?
The correct definition is the opposite of figuratively. This has been an ongoing linguistic war for nearly a century, and your WRONG thoughts on how it should be used only serve to further the enemies cause.
So after over a century of people using it that way some other people got a stick up their butt about it, cool. Doesn't make it wrong.
People who get het up about "literally" are fabulous.
If Dickens, Twain and Joyce can use it as an intensifier, then that's awesome enough for me.
Of course literally is often overused figuratively, flogged like a dead metaphorse; but used literally, literally is often literally redundant anyway.
I think it's got a third use now though, which is even more fun, using it to troll languague purists who think language drives communication rather than the other way round. That might well have motivated Mark Twain too.
Napoleon! Enemy anti-literalists have infiltrated another thread—we need reinforcements now!
Literally literally means figuratively.
The use of "literally" is part of the figure of speech you're pedantically referring to. Saying "figuratively" would be redundant, as everyone knows Copilot is not a nuclear reactor, and also declaring that you are using a figure of speech "weakens" it (like /s for sarcasm). By saying "literally" they are saying "wow, this fits so well that this isn't even a metaphor anymore".
If you want to correct everyone for saying literally instead of figuratively, correct every teenager saying "I'm actually dying rn 😂" with "ackshually you're not ACTUALLY dying, as I can see you are still alive typing tips fedora"
Oh. I thought “literally” was just referring to the fact that many of those data centers pull from nuclear grids.
I do apologize for using exaggerated words to beautify my sentences, tostiman, sir.
Gotta scoop all the data from everywhere on your machine, even the temporary notes you don't save.
They're not temporary any more, they keep coming back, I keep forgetting and then my PC reboots and I need to make a quick note and have to wait for 50 zombie text files to rise from the dead.
The new moto is “keep giving me money stupid”
How wasting billions on AI accomplishes that goal, I don’t know but I’m sticking with FOSS apps and platforms just to be safe
The first nuclear reactor was used to light a single bulb. Presumably it was either an incredibly inefficient bulb or an incredibly inefficient reactor.
Anyway this is all just an extension of everything having an app.
Using an actual nuclear reactor to light a single bulb is literally using a- I'm kidding. I leave lemmy for a couple hours, come back and see a total armageddon, all because there are picky people about the use of words.
And WIRED writes that bsky can't take a joke. Geez loueez.