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d21lewis on 29 June 2012
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Aielyn said:
d21lewis said:

*see where I bolded "merely or just".  Replace the word "Only" with the word "Merely" or the word "Just".  That's the interpretation that the rest of the world sees when we look at that ad.

I don't see any difference if you substitute "merely" or "just" into it. "I bought my Xbox 360 for just $99", "I bought my Xbox 360 for merely $99" - same thing.


It suggest that it's a small amount.  However, what constitutes a small amount is open for interpretation.  For example:

Officer: "You're under arrest."

Guy: "Under arrest?  I only puched him.  It's not like I shot him!"

or

Me:  "That's a nice hat!"

You:  "Yeah, for only $40, you can have one, too!"

Me:  "Only $40!?  I expected it to cost much more."

You'll probably interpret these as me saying that "Only punched him" or "Only cost $40" as meaning "It was this and this alone.  Absolutely nothing more".  That's not the meaning I was going for.  I mean that, in comparison to something else, the actual is less than the expected.  You expect to walk into the store with $150 and not be able to leave with an Xbox 360.  In reality, for merely/only/just $99, you can walk into a store and walk out with an Xbox 360*

 

*but you're going to have to agree to subscribe to Xbox Live for two years at $15 a month to do this.