DNC 2012: Joe Biden’s Misuse Of The Word ‘Literally’ Lambasted On Twitter

staff
September 07, 2012 07:03 AM

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In his speech at the Democratic National Convention Thursday night, the incorrect use of the word ‘literally’ was lambasted on Twitter. Literally.

He used the word nine times, according to the search of the transcription service TVEyes.

For instance at one of the places in his speech he said: “We now find ourselves at the hinge of history, and the direction we turn is not figuratively, it’s literally in your hands.”

At another place: “Look, Barack [Obama] understood that the search for bin Laden was about a lot more than taking a monstrous leader off the battlefield. It was about so much more than that. It was about righting an unspeakable wrong. It was about — literally, it was about healing an unbearable wound, a nearly unbearable wound in America’s heart.”

Watch Joe Biden’s full speech at the Democratic National Convention 2012:

It’s no surprise then, that the hashtag “#literally’ spread on Twitter, where a drinking game was born and would-be grammarians tweeted quips such as:

If you take a drink every time Biden says "literally," you literally will be passed out by the time Obama takes the stage. #dnc2012
— Benjamin R. Freed (@brfreed) September 7, 2012

Sommer Mathis tweeted:

Is he crying? Literally?
— Sommer Mathis (@sommermathis) September 7, 2012

Rick Klein, senior Washington editor and co-host of ABC’s Top Line Webcast (@rickklein) tweeted:

Joe Biden literally thinks "literally" means "figuratively." #DNC2012
— Rick Klein (@rickklein) September 7, 2012

Vanity Fair (@VanityFair) tweeted:

Literal groans from press box at this last "literally"
— VANITY FAIR (@VanityFair) September 7, 2012

Interestingly, Obama campaign began to take advantage of Joe Biden’s most favorite word on Twitter. After observing the chatter taking place on social media networking site someone in the Obama camp bought the sponsored tweet on the search term ‘literally’. Here is a tweet that proves it.