student asking question

Can I use the word "controversial" instead of "viral"?

teacher

Native speaker’s answer

Rebecca

No, it would change the meaning here if you replaced "viral" with "controversial". To go "viral" in this context is referring to the video becoming extremely popular and viewed across the internet or social media. So "viral" just reports that a lot of people have seen or watched something, but it doesn't tell us that that the video is "controversial".

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