Where it sits
The word now covers both ends of this line, and context tells you which one is meant.
What it doesn't mean
They recorded a use that is centuries old: Merriam-Webster's 1909 unabridged dictionary already noted it. Merriam-Webster says the 'in effect; virtually' sense has been in regular use since the 18th century, and that it doesn't mean quite the same as figuratively.
Merriam-Webster quotes Charles Dickens, Charlotte Brontë, W. M. Thackeray, James Joyce and F. Scott Fitzgerald using literally for emphasis.
Merriam-Webster says it doesn't qualify as slang. It labels the sense informal, as Cambridge does.
What it really means
Literally is the word people use to complain about other people's English. "You didn't literally die." Fair enough. But the complaint usually comes with a false story attached: that dictionaries recently gave in and changed the meaning.
They didn't. As checked in October 2026, Merriam-Webster lists two senses. The first is the original: in a literal way, to the letter. The second, labelled informal, is "in effect; virtually", used in an exaggerated way to emphasise something that isn't literally true. Cambridge has the same split: an informal sense "used to emphasize what you are saying".
The emphatic use is not new. Merriam-Webster reports evidence of it from 1769, its usage note calls it "surprisingly old", and its 1909 unabridged dictionary already said the word was "often used hyperbolically". American Heritage and Collins list the sense too. It's in the work of writers nobody would call careless: Charles Dickens, Charlotte Brontë, James Joyce, F. Scott Fitzgerald, and Thackeray, who wrote "I literally blazed with wit" in Punch in 1847.
Why does it still annoy people? Because it seems to flip a word into its opposite. Merriam-Webster disputes even that: the emphatic literally doesn't mean quite the same as "figuratively". It is hyperbole; Collins labels it an intensifier.
The dictionary's own advice is honest: this use is common and old, but it greatly irks many people and invites more criticism than understanding.
So use it knowingly. In speech, "literally" for emphasis is centuries-old English. In formal writing, save it for when you mean it to the letter, or leave it out. The sentence is usually stronger without it.
Where it comes from
via Late Latin litteralis, from Latin littera, a letter (Etymonline)
English — adverb ending
Merriam-Webster gives literally's first known use as the 15th century, from literal. The 'to the letter' sense came first; the emphatic sense grew out of it.
- 15th century
The first known use of literally, in its original sense, in Merriam-Webster's entry.
- 1769
The earliest evidence of the hyperbolic use that Merriam-Webster reports.
- 1847
Thackeray in Punch: 'I literally blazed with wit' — one of the examples Merriam-Webster cites.
- 1909
Merriam-Webster's unabridged dictionary already notes literally is 'often used hyperbolically; as, he literally flew'.
In real life
- "I literally ran to the station," she said, and in this case she meant it: she'd sprinted the whole way.
- The kids were literally bouncing off the walls, by which their dad meant they'd had too much birthday cake.
- He translated the menu literally, word by word, and 'toad in the hole' caused a lot of confusion.
Questions
Q01Can literally mean figuratively?
Not exactly. Merriam-Webster and Cambridge both list an informal sense of literally used for emphasis — 'I literally died of embarrassment'. Merriam-Webster points out that this isn't quite the same as 'figuratively'. Collins labels it an intensifier, and American Heritage calls it 'an intensive'.
Q02Did dictionaries change the definition of literally?
No. Merriam-Webster reports evidence of the emphatic use from 1769, and its own 1909 unabridged dictionary already noted that literally was 'often used hyperbolically'. American Heritage and Collins include the sense too. Including a sense in a dictionary describes how a word is used; it doesn't endorse it.
Q03Is it wrong to use literally for emphasis?
It isn't an error, but it irritates many readers. Merriam-Webster notes that it invites more criticism than understanding. In formal writing, keep literally for its literal sense, or drop it.
Q04Which famous writers used literally for emphasis?
Merriam-Webster cites Charles Dickens, Charlotte Brontë, W. M. Thackeray ('I literally blazed with wit', Punch, 1847), James Joyce and F. Scott Fitzgerald ('He literally glowed').
Sources
- literally — Merriam-Webster (entry, usage guide and FAQ).
- Did we change the definition of 'literally'? — Merriam-Webster.
- literally — Cambridge Dictionary.
- literal — Online Etymology Dictionary.