this post was submitted on 06 Nov 2023
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i feel like everyone like this eventually ends up realizing that prescriptivism is silly and language changing is not something that can even be slowed down, it's like trying to stop fish from evolving
I feel like some of it is worth fighting. Like "literally" being almost useless because it means one thing and also it's inverse. You now have to specify which one you mean when using it, which negates the point of using it at all. You might as well describe which concept you mean instead.
English makes no sense to begin with. Why do you park in the driveway but drive in the parkway? Why is infinite the opposite of finite but flammable and inflammable are synonymous? Why is the plural of louse lice, the plural of mouse mice, but the plural of house is not hice?
Who cares?
Definitions are useful, and their usefulness is in proportion to their stability over time.
I'd argue that literally isn't changing definitions. It still means literally. It's just that the most common usage of 'literally' is in a figurative or hyperbolic way. In fact, if the word DID change meaning to mean the opposite version, its usage would become much less meaningful since it's usage in a figurative way is done to show extreme figurative to the point that it might as well be considered literal, e.g "literally the worst day of my life"
The fact I've felt the need to clarify I mean actually literally before shows that the definition is losing it's purpose. Sure, sometimes it's clear that it's hyperbolic, but frequently there isn't a good way to know what meaning is intended, especially if it's online and/or you don't know their person speaking and their tendencies.
Exactly. Moving definitions around makes us lose meaning. Not only in our ability to articulate now, but also to understand what people said in the past.
well then i assume you're going to start speaking latin? that's the one language we have that doesn't change.
I’m talking about people from 20 years ago. People from the previous generation.
More like devolving, am I right?
Good God, you people completely miss the point of the meme. It's just a joke and you all are treating it like a serious debate on the value of correcting other people's grammar like that debate isn't simply a smokescreen for bullies selfishly taking out their emotions on others as it always has been.
c/woosh