Wordsmith.org: the magic of words

Wordsmith Talk

About Us | What's New | Search | Site Map | Contact Us  

Previous Thread
Next Thread
Print Thread
Page 1 of 2 1 2
#189148 02/08/10 04:57 PM
Joined: Feb 2008
Posts: 876
old hand
OP Offline
old hand
Joined: Feb 2008
Posts: 876
My students use the phrase "over exaggerate" often. It sounds just horrible to me, but I suppose one could make a case for it. WDYT? :0)

Joined: Apr 2000
Posts: 10,542
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Apr 2000
Posts: 10,542
this sounds, to me, akin to the objections we often hear to expressions such as very unique and more perfect.

He wanted to make his record collection more complete, and You can improve the sketch by making the lines more perpendicular, are often criticized as illogical. Such criticism confuses pure logic or a mathematical ideal with the rough approximations that are frequently needed in ordinary language. Certainly in some contexts we should use words strictly logically; otherwise teaching mathematics would be impossible. But we often think in terms of a scale or continuum rather than in clearly marked either/or categories. Thus, we may think of a statement as either logically true or false, but we also know that there are degrees of truthfulness and falsehood. [AHD usage note]

and, these terms strike me as being even more absolute (: ) than does exaggerate. but perhaps I greatly overstate my case.
-joe (highly agitated) friday

Joined: Dec 2006
Posts: 956
old hand
Offline
old hand
Joined: Dec 2006
Posts: 956
I think that here again context is the key. Exaggerate is not an absolute so something can be more exaggerated than another. To which degree? Slightly more than just exaggerated! So it is an expression which I believe is valid in a colloquial sense. It is betterer.

Joined: Dec 2000
Posts: 13,803
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Dec 2000
Posts: 13,803
Even uniquity can come in degrees. If something differs from everything else in one aspect it is unique. Something that differs from everything else in two aspects is more unique and if you have three unique things and the third differs from everything else in three or more aspects it is the most unique.

As olly says, exaggeration can come in degrees and there may be a level that is acceptable. If I've told you this once I've told you a thousand times. But If I said that I've told you this a googol times, that would be over exaggeration.

Joined: Feb 2008
Posts: 876
old hand
OP Offline
old hand
Joined: Feb 2008
Posts: 876
One google time of "over exaggerating" yields 1,740,000 hits, if that holds any water...

Joined: Aug 2005
Posts: 3,290
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Aug 2005
Posts: 3,290
The phrase very unique is perfectly grammatical in that unique is an adjective being qualified by an adverb very. The perceived problem with it has to do with logic, not grammar.


Ceci n'est pas un seing.
Joined: Jun 2006
Posts: 5,295
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Jun 2006
Posts: 5,295
Is is not also typical teenage-adolescent language fashion ? Here I often hear young people say things like 'mega exaggerating' or give me a 'mega double of'.... BTW, do they also write it or is it just spoken language?

Joined: Apr 2000
Posts: 10,542
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Apr 2000
Posts: 10,542
are you kidding me? can you see today's yute texting 'mega exaggerating'?

Joined: Jun 2006
Posts: 5,295
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Jun 2006
Posts: 5,295
No, texting no. Spoken language. Some people in this world still do it.

Joined: Feb 2008
Posts: 876
old hand
OP Offline
old hand
Joined: Feb 2008
Posts: 876
mga xager8ng....

Page 1 of 2 1 2

Moderated by  Jackie 

Link Copied to Clipboard
Forum Statistics
Forums16
Topics13,912
Posts229,283
Members9,179
Most Online3,341
Dec 9th, 2011
Newest Members
TRIALNERRA, befuddledmind, KILL_YOUR_SUV, Heather_Turey, Standy
9,179 Registered Users
Who's Online Now
0 members (), 444 guests, and 3 robots.
Key: Admin, Global Mod, Mod
Top Posters(30 Days)
Top Posters
wwh 13,858
Faldage 13,803
Jackie 11,613
tsuwm 10,542
wofahulicodoc 10,510
LukeJavan8 9,916
AnnaStrophic 6,511
Wordwind 6,296
of troy 5,400
Disclaimer: Wordsmith.org is not responsible for views expressed on this site. Use of this forum is at your own risk and liability - you agree to hold Wordsmith.org and its associates harmless as a condition of using it.

Home | Today's Word | Yesterday's Word | Subscribe | FAQ | Archives | Search | Feedback
Wordsmith Talk | Wordsmith Chat

© 1994-2024 Wordsmith

Powered by UBB.threads™ PHP Forum Software 7.7.5