"Basically" is commonly used to summarize something in a simple way. For example, I was just in a group chat where people were arguing about which uncommon French tenses were useful to learn. At the end of the conversation, one guy said, "Basically, don't learn any of them" to sum up the conversation. It can also just mean "fundamentally," "essentially," etc.
"Literally" technically comes from "literal" (opposite of "figurative"). When something literally happens, it ACTUALLY happens. It can be used for emphasis. Ex. "I received literally thousands of letters" means that you're not exaggerating! However, in common speech, lots of people use literally to mean figuratively... Ex. "OMG I LITERALLY DIED." Obviously this is incorrect. But people do it anyways >__>
Hi Nguyen,
"Basically" is derived from its root word for "Basic". So, this word is an adverb to describe the fundamental aspect of something or to analyse a concept or provide an explanation in its bare essential form.
For example: There are many chemical equations to describe photosynthesis; however, this process is basically a conversion of light energy to potential energy.
"Literally" comes from the word "literal", which means exactly as it is. When we read a text literally, we do not "read between the lines" or infer what the writer is trying to imply.
For example: When I told him that I was under the weather (which is an idiom to mean I was not feeling well), he literally thought I was referring to the weather forecast that day!
To sum it up, "basically" is to refer to something in the most simplistic way, while "literally" refers to interpret or do something exactly.
Hope this helps.
Cheers,
Lance
