Language is an important tool that allows us to communicate with one another efficiently. However, it’s often misused which dilutes the actual meaning of the words we use.

An example is the word “literally.” The correct way to use it is if you’re describing the exact way something happened. However, people tend to use it as an exaggeration. Misusing words like these can be confusing and cause misunderstandings. 

WJPS 10th grader Mateo Cuellar said, “I think people overuse it in the sense that they just use it wrong. Like sometimes they just say it for no reason and it has no meaning.”

WJPS 10th grader Luka Zubovic said, “Some people just like to say it a lot so then they’ll just add where they don’t need to, but some people don’t.”

Overall, using the word “literally” wrong has become super normalized in today’s day and age. We should remember that words have certain meanings for a reason. 
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