There are like, literally a million words that like so many people overuse and misuse, you know. I mean, like,I literally die every time I hear them” Have you ever heard anyone that sounds like this? Are you someone who sounds like this? The suggestion this week will be helpful for English learners, to make sure you don’t fall into the trap of abusing some common words in English, and also incredibly helpful for English speakers to break their, like, bad habit. 1. First, let’s consider the word, literally.
LITERALLY, THE MOST, LIKE, OVERUSED WORDS, LIKE… EVER, YOU KNOW? There are like, literally a million words that like so many people overuse and misuse, you know I mean, like,I literally die every time I hear them!” Have you ever heard anyone that sounds like this? Are you someone who sounds like this? The suggestion this week will be helpful for English learners, to make sure you don’t fall into the trap of abusing some common words in English, and also incredibly helpful for English speakers to break their, like, bad habit First, let’s consider the word, literally What does it mean? According to Merriam-Webster Learner’s Dictionary: in a literal way, using the ordinary and usual meaning of a word used to stress a statement/description that is true even though surprising in a completely accurate way Looking at it from this point, the most common misuse of the word would be confusing it with figuratively Figuratively can be seen as the opposite of literally Figurative language is creative, instead of using a word in its original way, we use it non-literally, in a way that’s untrue, usually in order to describe something else There are different types of figurative language, but that will be in another post… Consider the following video of Rachel Zoe, celebrity fashion stylist, and her complete misuse (and overuse) of the word literally Hopefully you can see the issue with it In the very first statement she says, “I literally want to cut myself in half.” If this were literal, then she REALLY wants to end her life, and is it even possible to cut yourself in half? A few seconds later she states, “I literally die for Paul McCartney.” Well, again this would be that if she met him, she would die I don’t think anyone can actually die FOR someone, and just by meeting them? See for yourself the amount she can butcher the word in a 1:27 video clip: How many times did you count her use the word? Courtesy Youtube channel: EngLangAUS Not only can you misuse literally, you can overuse it, too The Learner’s Dictionary also explains that this word can be used informally, to exaggerate information that couldn’t possibly be true However, for some strange reason, this word has become popular, especially amongst those seen on T.V (seen above) If celebrities say it, it must be cool right? NO I think most individuals, especially those with their own intellectual thought processes can agree that it’s not okay, and actually quite annoying to hear In fact, it was a friend who inspired to write the article based on his annoyance, and when I started to listen for it… it literally blew my mind! Or wait, literally? No I meant to say, figuratively :) To show overuse, check out clips from T.V show “Parks and Recreation.” Courtesy Youtube channel: BuenozAres Next, let’s look at vocalized pauses Vocalized pauses are the words used while speaking that are known as ‘fillers.’ These are the words like, “um” “er” “uh” or popular for some, and our focus today: “like” “I mean” “you know” These words fill our sentences while speaking for numerous reasons Sometimes they are natural, and part of our natural speech (to avoid sounding robotic), other times they happen because we get lost in thought, forget what we want to say, don’t know what to say, are nervous, etc… However, it can be mutually agreed that, when used too much, a person can sound unintelligent, or someone who lacks confidence The three words listed above are commonly used in film to represent the ditzy (dumb) girl, too-cool-for-school laid back stoners, or others similar These representations aren’t always true, and yes it can be said that intelligent people use these words; however, stereotypes don’t exist entirely based on false information Point of this message, avoid saying these words unless, like: you’re making it known what you enjoy, want, or prefer (I like the color yellow.) you’re using a preposition to compare similar things, describe something, or introduce examples (This shirt looks a lot like this other one I am wearing OR In college, I studied a lot of subjects like psychology, spanish, and sociology ) I mean: you’re giving a literal meaning of something, or clarifying information (When I said, “it literally blew my mind,” I meant that it surprised me.) you know: when you’re forming a question, and what to know if the person listening is aware of some knowledge (Do you know this band?) I am going to say strongly avoid using it at the end of a sentence, there are so many other things you can say (….do you understand? ….do you agree? … what you think? …etc) :) When you find yourself wanting to use such words, pause, take a breath, and then continue your normal speech Don’t fall into the routine of using too much slang, or informal speech because you don’t always want to represent yourself in this manner Be aware of your surroundings, and be aware of how you want to show yourself What other words you hear that are overused, misused, or just get under your skin (bother/annoy you)? Tell me about them in the comments! If you like the article, please share! Happy Learning! ♥ “ ... meeting them? See for yourself the amount she can butcher the word in a 1:27 video clip: How many times did you count her use the word? Courtesy Youtube channel: EngLangAUS Not only can you misuse literally, ... (….do you understand? ….do you agree? … what you think? …etc) :) When you find yourself wanting to use such words, pause, take a breath, and then continue your normal speech Don’t fall into the. .. speech because you don’t always want to represent yourself in this manner Be aware of your surroundings, and be aware of how you want to show yourself What other words you hear that are overused,