Ok so how does a cancer kill its host?

It grows until it consumes so many nutrients that the other living cells don’t get enough. The host literally starves even if he eats plentifully.

The same applies for the US: The billionaires are not only hoarding wealth, but by doing so they’re crippling the economy for workers and everybody besides themselves.

  • tate@lemmy.sdf.org
    11·
    4 hours ago

    “Billionaires are literally cancer” is simply a false statement, unless “literally” was used, incorrectly, as hyperbole.

    That is my point. Literally can be used correctly in a statement that is not correct, and my reading of the original post is that was OP’s intention. They did not misuse the word “literally.”

    I’m not debating the meaning of the word cancer.

    • Rivalarrival@lemmy.todayEnglish
      1·
      59 minutes ago

      So, billionaires are not “literally” cancer, but “billionaires are literally cancer” is supposedly a correct use of “literally”?

      That is my point. Literally can be used correctly in a statement that is not correct,

      This is generally true, but in this particular sentence, the reason the sentence is false is specifically because of the meaning of “literally”.

      “The sky is literally purple” is a correct use of “literally” in a false statement. This is what you are trying to argue.

      “Billionaires are a cancer” is a correct, figurative statement.

      “Billionaires are literally cancer” is false specifically because “literally” does not mean “figuratively”.

      • tate@lemmy.sdf.org
        1·
        13 minutes ago

        “Billionaires are literally cancer” is false specifically because “literally” does not mean “figuratively”.

        Correct. But that is not what OP said. Read it again and I think you will see that OP is saying that “Billionaires are cancer” is not a figurative statement at all, but a literal one. You can disagree with them (I do, btw), but they have not misused the word “literally.”