"Literally" has literally
become a cliché, in that people are literally overusing this word, and often in situations where it literally means
the opposite of what they are literally wanting to say (if anything at all). To review, "literally" means
that it really happened. No "sorts of's." "No kinda's." It really happened, exactly
as you say. So if you say, for instance, that you "literally died laughing," then you really died, which makes
it a bit of a mystery how you could be saying such a thing, but I digress. "Figurative," on the other hand,
means it's a figure of speech, and it didn't actually happen that way. Here, it really is "sort of."
So, for instance, if it's really important that you let somebody know that you really didn't die, you can say you "figuratively
died laughing." Of course, to say you "died laughing" is a cliché, too, whether it's literal or
figurative. But, once again, I digress. The easiest way to keep these two words straight is to stop saying you
"literally" did anything. Come up with something new. Your readers will appreciate it.
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