Biden: I Have Met “Literally Every” World Leader

For many, the use of the word “literally” is literally the bane of their existence. People often use it for emphasis when the literal meaning of the sentence could not possibly be true. Take statement of Vice President Joe Biden who loves to use the word and, on Monday, told a crowd that he has met “literally every” world leader at my school, George Washington University. It was funny enough that Carrie Dann of NBC News had to tweet it.

Notably, while most dictionaries have literally held the line on the definition, Google has added a meaning that is more Bidenesque:

literally
ˈlɪt(ə)rəli/Submit
adverb
in a literal manner or sense; exactly.
. . .
informal
used for emphasis while not being literally true.
“I have received literally thousands of letters”

Thus, we can assume Biden is using the Google meaning and has not literally (formal) met every world world but it literally (informal) feels that way.

Source: The Week