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Entitled is shown as a translation of the new word "rajtas" but not allowed as a correct answer
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I assume that it's just too weird in this context to use word "entitled" in English.
This is 11 months after your post but my answer-> Am I entitled to go to Europe? was accepted as correct.
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Ok, here's how (I think) it works: when you click on an underlined Esperanto word you'll see a list of possible meanings/English translations. However, not every one of them will necessarily work in that particular instance, so you have to choose the right one. Cxu ne?
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I imagine this being spoken by a teenager from the Asian side of Istanbul asking his mother to be allowed to take the train over to the European side :)
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I think that English is messed up, and that "may I" shouldn't mean "am I allowed to", since technically it means "might I", or "will I". So technically "May I go to Europe" could be "might I/will I go to Europe?" Anyone else think that's weird? Especially since if you order it differently, as a statement, it's, "I may go to Europe"...which could mean something different than "I am allowed to go to Europe".
This is one reason why people go off and construct new languages. Oh, wait...
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But if we didn't have all of these context sensitive words, we wouldn't have our expansive capability for double entendres. (Which I love...)
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My point is, the "weirdness" you point out to is a natursl, and inevitable, feature of every language, including Esperanto, and that is, that words and phrasesboften have multiple meanings and connotations that we are ofen unaware of because in our native language we automatcally sort these out in context.
When learning a new language we often overlook this fact, that there's often a cloud of meanings hovering around any given phrase or expression. Don't expect these clouds to match up exactly between languages (e.g. "cxu mi rajtas" vs. "May I").
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Don't try to make sense in English, it's a weird language. And yet we all keep using it... Oh well.
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"May I", as it is commonly used and understood, has a number of connotations, including "will I" and "am I allowed to". "Might I" is also used with a range of meanings.
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I was always taught that “may” was used to ask permission and that “might” was about possibility. However, times and languages change and it does now seem acceptable to use them interchangeably.
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how would a young esperantist ask for permission ? would it be "Ĉu mi rajtas fari tion ?"
