- In a literal manner or sense; exactly: "the driver took it literally when asked to go straight over the traffic circle".
- Used to acknowledge that something is not literally true but is used for emphasis or to express strong feeling.
emphasis mine.
I got curious so I looked up some examples that still can mean something or the exact opposite:
Bolt - run away or secure in place
Cleave - cut or join
Garnish - add (parsley) or remove (wages)
Weather - weather the storm or become weathered
"Awful" isn't a reversal of meaning, it's a narrowing of meaning.
> Bolt - run away or secure in place
These are homynyms, not divergent meanings. A crossbow bolt is fast, a door bolt is secure.
> Cleave - cut or join
These appear to have converged from the separate Old English verbs "cleofan" and "clifian": http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?allowed_in_frame=0&s...
(Interestingly, "literally" has been misused to mean its opposite since at least the 1680s: http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=literally&allow... . We've held off the "it means just what I choose it to mean" hordes so far, why give up now?)
http://www.rinkworks.com/words/contronyms.shtml
Words that are their own antonyms.
My favorite is off: "off - off, on (e.g., the alarm went off)"
The king did not mean that it was funny or entertaining. He was not calling it atrocious or appalling. He did not consider it fake or pretentious.
In 17th century England, amusing meant "riveting." Awful meant "full of awe" or "awe inspiring." And artificial meant "artistic."