You can't find your camera. Last week, you took it to a friend's apartment. You wonder if you left it there, so you call and ask:
Did I leave my camera at your place, by any chance?
You're talking to a new client. You need him to sign a contract before you can work with him. You hand him the contract and say:
Skim over it and let me know if you have any questions.
You've written a cover letter for a job interview. You'd like your English tutor to review it for you. You want her to correct your mistakes, and also to suggest improvements. You write in an email to her:
I'd appreciate any feedback you can give me on the content, as well as the spelling and grammar.
You're going on a bike ride with a friend. She doesn't have a bicycle, so you let her borrow yours. You're taller than she is, so the seat is too high for her. You offer to lower the seat for her:
Here – let me adjust the seat for you.
You're talking to a guy at a party. He speaks with a normal American English accent, so you think that he grew up in the U.S. But you're curious what country his parents or other ancestors came from. You ask:
Do you mind if I ask what your ethnic background is?
background, ethnicity, foreign country, polite, questions, race, rude, strangers, 日本語サポート 
You're sitting in the window seat in coach on an airplane. You need to go to the restroom, but the person sitting next to you is taking up too much space and you can't get out. You say to him:
Excuse me. Can I slide past you?
This is what you say to strangers to get their attention:
Excuse me, we're taking up donations for the Haiti Relief Fund. Do you have a moment?
Excuse me. Would you mind watching over my stuff for me for just a minute?
The "e" at the beginning is unstressed, so sometimes it sounds like "Scuze me"
This is a polite question to ask when you need to get into a place that's being blocked by someone's body. Some other examples of situations that you can use this in are:
"Can I slide past you?" is a friendly way to ask this. It sounds friendly because the word "slide" sounds so smooth and easy. It's like you're saying, "Can I go past you quietly and without bothering you much?"
If you're more annoyed or if you're a loud and aggressive person, you can ask like this:
Can I get by?
You're talking to your college academic advisor about which classes you should take next semester. He asks you if you know a certain professor. You think you might know who he's talking about, but you're not sure. You ask:
An oldish gentleman, built kind of solidly?
You received a birthday gift from a coworker. You are opening it in front of her. It's a shirt for you. You want to make her think that you're happy about the gift, so you say:
How lovely!
A coworker is visiting you at your home for the first time. You want to be polite, so you offer him something to drink:
Can I get you something to drink? Coffee? Tea?
You introduced yourself to a new employee at your company in the hallway. You chatted with each other for a minute, and now you need
Well, I look forward to working with you.
gerund, introductions, polite, work 