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Some questions and 'on spite'. Good day. I) French taught me that it is possible to learn a language 'on spite alone'. What does 'on spite alone' mean? Is it the same as saying 'in spite...'? Could you give me some more examples of it? II) "I dislike people trying to make a 'quick buck off' stuff related to language learning...". Also, what does 'buck off' stand for? Could it be a slang? III) In this sentence: "Could I put them in gerund as well?". Shoud I have used 'might' or 'may' instead? How can I distinguish when using either one? I thank you all.

Answers · 2

1
Hello! 1) Spite means “a desire to hurt/annoy/offend someone.” So if you say “he learned French on spite alone” then you are saying he learned French to make a point to someone. It has no relation to “in spite.l 2) Yes! This is slang. A ‘buck’ In this sentence means a dollar. If you want to make a quick buck off something, you are looking to earn money quickly by doing that something. 3) Might and may are being used for permission. They are interchangeable but most people will say ‘May’ in today’s English. Your sentence is correct because you are asking if you are able to do this, or if you can do this. Many people use ‘can’ as well to ask for permission even though it is technically incorrect. Think ‘Can I use the bathroom?’ Well yes, you have the ability to use the bathroom. But you’re asking for permission. Instead it should be ‘May I use the bathroom?’ Again, this is being VERY picky. Most people do not care if you use ‘Can/could’ Hope this helps! Feel free to reach out if you have any questions!
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Bom Dia! I) On spite - this means solely out of anger, with passion, and a strong desire for revenge! More frequently, you will see it said "out of spite" such as, "He ate his sister's whole birthday cake out of spite". This means I at her cake in anger and revenge. The reason why (what she did to upset him) would be mentioned previously. II) This means "easy profit" as well as "take advantage". It has a negative connotation "I'm tired of seeing facebook advertisements of companies selling coronavirus cures, trying to make a quick buck off of the panic and lack of education around the virus!" III) The original sentence you wrote is correct!! You would use might or may if you were in a formal situation, and asking permission. In this situation, you are not asking permission, and are asking a question in an informal manner. The difference between might and may is that "might I" is British 90% of the time, and "may I" is American 90% of the time. When Americans use the word "might", they use it in a very different context, where it means "perhaps" as in "I might go to the market tomorrow" - there is a chance I will go to the market tomorrow. Here is how you would use "might I "/ "may I" in a sentence. Again, note that in this case they are interchangable. "May I go to the bathroom?" / "Might I get a drink of water?" Essentially, "might I/may I" is a more sophisticated and fancy way of saying "Can I please....?". Hopefully you found this helpful - these are very advanced questions.

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