Literary Terms You Might Be Misusing

George Bellows, “Swans in Central Park.” Public domain via Wikimedia Commons.

In case you were wondering, usage determines meaning. That dictionary that you thought was establishing meaning actually just provides a snapshot of how the language is used at any particular time. That’s why words like “selfie” get added from time to time. If enough people decided to start calling dogs cats, or vice versa, eventually that would become standard. So trying to resist the way that users of language push meaning…