Amusing bit of hyperbole in the very first line of the article:
“San Francisco City Attorney Dennis Herrera is laying down the law — literally. “
Nowhere in the article is it explained how they “literally” are laying down the law.
“San Francisco City Attorney Dennis Herrera is laying down the law — literally. “
Nowhere in the article is it explained how they “literally” are laying down the law.
Laying down the law is an idiom. It doesn't have to do with the law. (Someone posted an example specific to laws, which confuses the rhetorical device.)
As laying down the law does NOT have to do with law (e.g. I could "lay down the law" by punching someone in the head for touching my stamp collection), they add "literally" because Dennis Herrera is, in fact, the city attorney and is specifically applying the actual law. So rather than doing something unrelated to the law, which is what the idiom "lay down the law" allows for, the idiom's loose definition now has a literal application regarding the word "law", in this case.
"As part of city law, San Francisco requires property owners renting out units for less than 30 days to register with the city’s office of short-term rentals, as well as be a permanent resident of that unit."
They were breaking the law, Herrara enforced said law.
https://www.salon.com/2013/08/22/according_to_the_dictionary...
I was quite surprised when I randomly found out yesterday.
I wonder if this is how people felt when some guy invented the word "flammable" in 1813.
1) in a literal sense or manner.
2) (informal) used in an exaggerated way to emphasize a statement or description that is not literally true or possible
I literally just did.
But yeah people using this term still grinds my gears.
> to state officially what someone must do or how they must do it
As in,
> The Natural Resources Department has laid down tough standards for water quality.
Using that meaning this "literally" seems to work just fine.