Hacker Newsnew | past | comments | ask | show | jobs | submitlogin

Then we already have those languages: They exist because they are used.

I'm not sure this is helpful though. We've accepted "literally" also means "not literally" without creating a new language.



> I'm not sure this is helpful though. We've accepted "literally" also means "not literally" without creating a new language.

http://waste.typepad.com/waste/2014/07/on-a-popular-misconce...

It's just a figurative use of "literally". It's like saying "He's such a baby" of an immature (<- also figurative!) adult. You aren't saying that such an adult is actually a baby.


Yes, but that introduces some backwards incompatibility. The C standards body has a really, really high bar for doing so. English, not so much. That is a choice they're making.


Programming languages necessarily have stricter definitions and semantics than human languages.




Guidelines | FAQ | Lists | API | Security | Legal | Apply to YC | Contact

Search: