This week “anxious” and “eager” go head-to-head, plus the overstated use of the word “literally.”
Michigan Radio's Rina Miller talks with Anne Curzan, a professor of English at the University of Michigan, who specializes in linguistics.
“There are people who think that anxious should always mean worried, should be linked with the noun anxiety, and not mean that you’re looking forward to something,” said Curzan.
“You can say, I’m anxious about the test, but you shouldn’t say I’m anxious to read that book,” she said.
Curzan says “anxious” has been used to mean “eager” since about the 18th century.
Listen above to hear two other words that are often interchangeable, "disinterested” and “uninterested. Plus, the interesting use of “literally.”
