this post was submitted on 09 May 2026
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Showerthoughts

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A "Showerthought" is a simple term used to describe the thoughts that pop into your head while you're doing everyday things like taking a shower, driving, or just daydreaming. The most popular seem to be lighthearted clever little truths, hidden in daily life.

Here are some examples to inspire your own showerthoughts:

Rules

  1. All posts must be showerthoughts
  2. The entire showerthought must be in the title
  3. No politics
    • If your topic is in a grey area, please phrase it to emphasize the fascinating aspects, not the dramatic aspects. You can do this by avoiding overly politicized terms such as "capitalism" and "communism". If you must make comparisons, you can say something is different without saying something is better/worse.
    • A good place for politics is c/politicaldiscussion
  4. Posts must be original/unique
  5. Adhere to Lemmy's Code of Conduct and the TOS

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Since it's widely accepted that the word "literally" can be used to add emphasis, we need another word that can be used when you want to make it clear that you really mean "literally" in the original sense.

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[–] farmgineer@nord.pub 2 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago)

Why? In which situations would this be actually ambiguous and, in that set, in which situations would the disambiguation actually be necessary for some real reason?

[–] nymnympseudonym@piefed.social 2 points 1 month ago

"Inflammable"

[–] TootSweet@lemmy.world 2 points 1 month ago

If we come up with something in this thread, I'll be here to corrupt its meaning by misusing it.

Why? Does fungus need a reason to give you jock itch?

[–] mcSlibinas@lemmy.world 2 points 1 month ago

Aliterally?

[–] Binturong@lemmy.ca 2 points 1 month ago

Actually, though.

[–] DagwoodIII@piefed.social 2 points 1 month ago
[–] anon_8675309@lemmy.world 2 points 1 month ago (1 children)

Or just stop widely accepting the dual meaning.

[–] Dearth@lemmy.world 1 points 1 month ago (2 children)

How do you accomplish that?

[–] anon_8675309@lemmy.world 1 points 1 month ago

“You” has to be a general you not a specific you.

[–] Amnesigenic@lemmy.ml 1 points 1 month ago

Bullying mostly

[–] LavaPlanet@sh.itjust.works 1 points 1 month ago (5 children)

I would argue that, uses of literally, in the literal sense, in common language, is rarely used, any more. Mostly because, If you have to add "believe me" at the end of your sentence, it makes you seem sus. And "literally", in common language, is usually added to the end, in the same way, the sarcastic, and facetious, presentations use. So we've adopted different signifiers, mostly, anyway. People usually say, "you are not going to believe what happened to me today ". Even the sarcastic etc uses are dying out, in a time when, extreme positions aren't, easily taken at face value for being over the top, or, easily definable as sarcasm etc, which is what sarcasm relies heavily on. I think, all the extreme stuff going on, is making it almost impossible to even use literally, in almost either application. I'm sad! It's such a fun word to say.

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[–] Donebrach@lemmy.world 1 points 1 month ago
[–] FreddiesLantern@leminal.space 1 points 1 month ago

Actually…. Oh wait that one is almost on the list too by now.

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