I was looking at the questions list and realized one hot question on the right-sidebar's list that I had never seen before, it was talking about the phrasal verb 'Scoot over' which means
To move in order to give some space so that someone else can sit
However, how is this verb used? Is there a past form? Can I specify an exact side where I want the person to go? Like: "Scoot over a little bit to the left so I can sit"
Also, as I looked up this phrasal verb's meaning in internet, I saw this definition:
Move to the side, especially to make room. For example, If you scoot
over a little I'll have room to sit.
I can understand that "room" is working as "space", is it working exactly as "space"?
I also found this definition:
To move or slide something to the side: Scoot your chair over so we
can talk
What does "scoot the chair over" mean? Does it mean the same as above but instead of moving a body, moving the chair in order to give space?
Is there a past form of Scoot? Like: He scooted over so I could sit.
Best Answer
All of your presumptions are pretty much spot on.
Scoot over does indeed mean to move in order to make room for another person, and yes there is no reason why you can't apply a direction to the instruction
...though in real world usage, it's somewhat implicit that by asking someone to scoot over, you are asking them to move in the opposite direction to where you are positioned - i.e. there isn't enough room as it stands, therefore they have to move away from you in order to make room. You can also ask a person to scoot their chair over, for example in a meeting, in order to make room for you to position your chair.
In the context of 'If you scoot over a little I'll have room to sit', yes, room is synonymous with 'space' in this context - you are effectively asking the person to make enough space for you to sit down too.
And finally, 'scoot' is a regular verb, therefore it does take the past tense form 'scooted', as you correctly guessed.