It's so over-used I don't like "arguably" anymore, either, but... I still think that it makes sense. You're basically saying, "I think this point is so good, you can make a strong argument for it." Hence, you make the point "arguably".
But 1) you could argue (no pun intended) that "arguably" means "there's disagreement around this point, hence it's open to argument", thus it's actually weaker than you intended, and 2) the word itself is really weird; it's not even as coherent as the abuse of "hopefully".
So I'll refrain from using the word "arguably", irrespective of its merits. :)
Eric, what do you think of "inarguably"? And what I saw recently: "unarguably"?
In any event, I am glad that you "will refrain from using the word 'arguably,' irrespective of its merits." And I am glad, too, that you used "irrespective" rather than "irregardless." And also the possessive "its."
3 Comments:
At 8:56 PM,
emlarson said…
It's so over-used I don't like "arguably" anymore, either, but... I still think that it makes sense. You're basically saying, "I think this point is so good, you can make a strong argument for it." Hence, you make the point "arguably".
But 1) you could argue (no pun intended) that "arguably" means "there's disagreement around this point, hence it's open to argument", thus it's actually weaker than you intended, and 2) the word itself is really weird; it's not even as coherent as the abuse of "hopefully".
So I'll refrain from using the word "arguably", irrespective of its merits. :)
At 4:47 PM,
Anonymous said…
Eric, what do you think of "inarguably"? And what I saw recently: "unarguably"?
In any event, I am glad that you "will refrain from using the word 'arguably,' irrespective of its merits." And I am glad, too, that you used "irrespective" rather than "irregardless." And also the possessive "its."
At 4:50 PM,
Anonymous said…
This is arguably a good reason to avoid the word.
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