literally

[diamondcutter]

After class on Wednesday, I hurried to the school skateboarding club. I was running out of the classroom when I bumped into a girl literally. I said sorry to her and she smiled at me.

(from an English textbook for senior high school students in China, published by Foreign Language Teaching and Research Press)

In the 2nd sentence, the use of “literally” looks odd to me. I’d like to know if it means “exactly” here.

 

[jutfrank]

We often use bump into somebody in a non-literal way, where it means something like 'meet somebody by chance'. The writer here is making it clear that he means it in a literal way.

 

[PeterCW]

The word is OK, though I'd put it before 'bumped'. It indicates that the speaker really did have physical contact with the girl. The 'bumping into' was not just a casual meeting.

So would I.

 

[Tarheel]

After class on Wednesday, I hurried to the school skateboarding club. I was running out of the classroom when I bumped into a girl. I said sorry to her and she smiled at me.

The context makes if perfectly clear that it was a physical encounter. However, if you must use "literally" use it before "bumped". (Note that I deleted "literally" from the text.)

 

[diamondcutter]

Thank you all, teachers.

I wonder if the writer means she didn’t just brush past the girl but bumped into her completely (say a head-on collision) by using the word “literally”. I’d like to know if “literally” could be used that way.

 

[probus]

In your context "lierally" means "actually" as opposed to the sense pointed out by jutfrank.