I heard that I can say I'm "absolutely furious" but I can't say I'm "absolutely angry" cause it's incorrect. Is it true?
absolutely angry - incorrect?
I've never really thought about this issue before, but I think I agree with what you heard. As a native speaker, "absolutely furious" sounds natural to me, but "absolutely angry" does not.
I really have no clue why this is the case. I mean, "angry" is a gradable adjective; and there are some adverbs that can go with it, such as "extremely" and "incredibly"; but for some reason, the adverbs "completely" and "absolutely" don't seem to work here.
I really have no clue why this is the case. I mean, "angry" is a gradable adjective; and there are some adverbs that can go with it, such as "extremely" and "incredibly"; but for some reason, the adverbs "completely" and "absolutely" don't seem to work here.
<<You could use it to mean "certainly" "I *am* absolutely angry!">>
It does seem a little more natural there; in other words, as an argumentative response.
A: "Well, you're obviously not angry."
B: "I'm absolutely angry!"
Here, it's as if "absolutely" isn't really qualifying "angry", but rather it's emphasizing the truth of the assertion, as if to say, "It's absolutely true that I'm angry!"
But outside of this limited context, "absolutely angry" still sounds unnatural.
It does seem a little more natural there; in other words, as an argumentative response.
A: "Well, you're obviously not angry."
B: "I'm absolutely angry!"
Here, it's as if "absolutely" isn't really qualifying "angry", but rather it's emphasizing the truth of the assertion, as if to say, "It's absolutely true that I'm angry!"
But outside of this limited context, "absolutely angry" still sounds unnatural.