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Contronyms Are 'Literally' The
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The American television series "Seinfeld" was famous for
its unusual and often strange conversations. These
conversations often took place in a diner - a kind of
small, informal restaurant.
In one program, the character George is sad about where
he is in life. George feels that he has made poor
choices. He wants to change his life around by doing the
opposite of what he has done. He would like to eat
different foods, be willing to talk to strangers, and so
on.
Let's listen to a few lines from the show.
"Well, here's your chance to try the opposite. Instead
of tuna salad and being intimidated by women... chicken
salad and going right up to them.”
“Yeah, I should do the opposite, I should.”
“If every instinct you have is wrong, then the opposite
would have to be right."
Today, we will explore the idea of opposites. Namely, we
will look at words that have at least two meanings: one
meaning and an opposite meaning.
We will also explore disputes around these words, like
one involving the word "literally".
Contronyms
English has a number of words with opposite meanings.
They are called contronyms.
You will hear contronyms in the news, official speeches,
and everyday conversation.
You will even see them in writing.
Consider the word "sanction."
A sanction can be a kind of punishment for disobeying a
law, especially an international law.
Imagine you hear a news story about the United Nations
Security Council. The story might begin with the words,
"Security Council votes to impose sanctions."*
If you follow the news, you are probably familiar with
this expression.
However, the word "sanction" can have an opposite
meaning: an official approval for an action.
For example, you might read a news story about a legal
dispute. The story might say, "Critics say the policy
lacked legal sanction."
In this case, the critics are saying that the policy did
not have official approval.
Because "sanction" has a second, opposite meaning, it is
a contronym.
Here's another example of a contronym: the word “bill”.
You can have a $50 bill, or you can receive a $50 bill
for medical services. In the first example, "bill" means
a piece of paper money. In the second case, "bill"
suggests a document that tells you how much money you
owe.
Disputes over language
Americans sometimes dispute the use of a contronym.
Consider the word "literally."
On the internet, many stories and videos are sharply
critical of this word.
"A lot of you out there who say 'literally' don't seem
to understand what 'literally' means."
Literally, in its traditional meaning, means "by the
letter". It later took on the meaning "with the meaning
of each word given exactly."**
Americans often use it in a completely different way.
Imagine you hear the following conversation:
“Did you hear Tom's story?”
“Yes, I was literally dying of laughter. It was so
funny!”
Here, the second speaker does not mean that she is
dying. When she says "literally", she means
"figuratively".
The word "literally" is like the character George from
Seinfeld. "Literally", like George, spent time doing one
thing. Now it is looking for a change.
Naturally, the word itself is not making this decision
to change. English speakers are using the word in
different ways.
There is nothing new or strange about this change. Many
words change over time – just like people and societies.
Social uses of words
John McWhorter is an expert on languages. He notes that
English speakers use some words for what he calls
common, social uses. He refers to these uses by the
acronym “FACE”.
Do not worry about all of the terms. The one we are
interested in is the letter "F" in FACE. It means
"factuality."
McWhorter notes that English speakers use words to show
how truthful or exact their statements are. In other
words, they include words to show how "factual" their
statements are.
"Literally" has become a word that shows factuality. It
shows that the speaker is using an overstatement or
exaggerated language.
So, when a person says "I was literally dying of
laughter," they are using the word "literally" to show
that they are using exaggerated language.
If you compare this use of "literally" with the first
definition of "literally," you will notice that
"literally" has become a contronym.
McWhorter notes that this is a natural progression for
the word. There is nothing wrong or incorrect about this
change, he adds.
What can you do?
The next time you are listening to an English speaker or
reading a document in English, look for examples of
contronyms.
If you are having trouble understanding a sentence, it
might be because the speaker or writer is using a less
common meaning of a word.
Try to think about the word's context. Sometimes you can
understand a contronym's meaning by thinking about the
other words that come in the sentence with it.
Contronyms are a strange, fun part of language. They are
literally the easiest thing about the English language.
“I think you are you exaggerating…”
I'm Jill Robbins.
And I'm John Russell.
John Russell wrote this story for Learning English.
George Grow was the editor.
* The beginning of a news story is often called a
headline.
** McWhorter, John. Words on the Move. Henry Holt and
Co. 2016. Pgs. 22-28 |
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Words in This Story |
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conversation – n.
an informal talk involving two people or a small
group of people; the act of talking in an informal
way
- character
– n. a person in a play
or story
-
intimidated - adj.
to be afraid
- instinct
- n. a way of behaving,
thinking, or feeling that is not learned; a natural
desire or tendency that makes you want to act in a
particular way
- impose
– v. to establish; to
bring about as if by force
-
figuratively – adj.
Expressing one thing normally while talking about
another
- refer
– v. to think of; to
send for treatment
-
factuality – n.
The quality of being actual or factual: actuality,
fact, factualness, reality, truth
-
exaggerated - adj.
to think of or describe something as larger or
greater than it really is
- context
– n. the situation in
which something happens
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