Words… what’s the point?
Sure, they’ve allowed our society to reach countless milestones that we may have never been able to achieve if we were constrained to communicating solely through grunts, but like… the hassle, you know?
They’re so easy to do (you “do” words, right?) incorrectly. Sometimes, for example, you want to say hanging out with your nephew is “incredible.” But because of “words,” you mess it up, like Ivanka Trump.
Cuddling my little nephew Luke… the best part of an otherwise incredible day! pic.twitter.com/8Ci5SD1VJ8
— Ivanka Trump (@IvankaTrump) September 19, 2017
After her day at the United Nations with her father, Ivanka said hanging with her brother Eric’s baby was “the best part of an otherwise incredible day!” But, “otherwise” in this context effectively means “different from” the subject of the sentence or phrase. So, one interpretation is that Ivanka said her day was incredible, but hanging with Luke was not. Of course, what she likely meant to say was that cuddling her nephew was “the best part of an already incredible day” or simply “the best part of an incredible day.” As it stands, however, the sentence doesn’t mean what she thinks it means.
See… if we didn’t have words, this wouldn’t be a problem.
Regardless of what she meant, Twitter wasn’t letting Ivanka get away with the mistake.
Ivanka: “I don’t know what ‘otherwise’ means.” https://t.co/WUmPkUP283
— Kayleigh Donaldson (@Ceilidhann) September 19, 2017
OTHERWISE?
— Kate (@LadyBroseph) September 20, 2017
OTHERWISE?
OTHERWISE?
OTHERWISE?
OTHERWISE?
OTHERWISE?
OTHERWISE?
OTHERWISE?
OTHERWISE?
OTHERWISE? https://t.co/7MOGK0vBGG
https://twitter.com/normwilner/status/910176761610215424
Learn the language or get out 🗣 https://t.co/TQ7QMFGgmC
— Karl Duckworth ☥ (@GODbyBLOOD) September 20, 2017
https://twitter.com/internettara/status/910376847476748288
I am confused by the use of “otherwise” — have I been misusing this word for years? https://t.co/E0jicqsooc
— Jeremy Vine (@theJeremyVine) September 20, 2017
https://twitter.com/PolitikMasFina/status/910478904510558208
Unlike the tweet below, OTHERWISE is used to contrast situations of different mood (sad/happy, interesting/boring). https://t.co/SIAizbzyLy
— BLIP idiomas & servicios | 🧑🏻🏫🍉 (@Blip_Idiomas) September 20, 2017
https://twitter.com/PersianCeltic/status/910510026330185729
We’re sure it was just a slip-up and that Ivanka has an otherwise firm grip on the English language.
